Guernsey owned airline Aurigny to trial Dornier planes

Guernsey government-owned airline Aurigny is to try a replacement for the Trislander planes between the island and Jersey.

The airline has been operating the Britten-Norman Trislander since 1971.

There are currently seven in the fleet, each carrying up to 16 passengers, due to be phased out in 2014.

Mark Darby chief executive of Aurigny said the airline would test the Dornier 228 aircraft between Guernsey and Jersey from Monday for two weeks.

He said: "The purpose of the trial is to allow us to assess the suitability of the aircraft as a possible replacement for the Trislanders.

"The aircraft will be deployed on our regular scheduled inter-island services as well as on one of our Bristol flights."

The Dornier 228 is a twin-turboprop aircraft. It requires two pilots and will seat up to 19 passengers.