The Islander serves publicly supported routes connecting 16 airports and airstrips. Short runways restrict alternatives, while boarding arrangements can prevent some passengers with reduced mobility from using the service.
A project to improve access to Scotland’s island aircraft was seeking alternative funding after Transport Scotland could not identify money for its next stage, according to papers prepared for the Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership’s board meeting on 11 September 2026.
HITRANS said the agency supported the proposal, submitted in autumn 2025, but had been unable to fund the work needed to take a prototype lifting device towards final design and manufacture. The partnership and its project partners were exploring other sources of support.
The aircraft is the Britten-Norman Islander, used on council-funded public service obligation routes in Orkney, Shetland, the Western Isles and Argyll and Bute. A Scottish Government briefing prepared for the First Minister’s Orkney visit in February 2025 described a network serving 16 airports. It said most had short runways for which the Islander was the only viable aircraft.
The constraints are evident in the operators’ own passenger information. Hebridean Air Services says conventional boarding aids cannot be used with its Islanders because of their compact design. Loganair advises passengers who need assistance on its Orkney inter-island network to discuss their requirements before booking.
A door 60 centimetres above the ground
Hebridean Air Services’ guidance places the passenger door 60 centimetres above ground level. The rear-left opening is 109 centimetres high, with a cabin height of 126 centimetres at the back. Ordinary catering lifts and transport wheelchairs are unavailable for boarding this aircraft, the operator says.
Small steps can be provided, and ground staff can help someone reach the aircraft in a manual wheelchair. The airline recommends a companion for passengers who need help and says passengers must be able to board and leave without staff support. The aircraft does not require cabin crew; the pilot and ground staff assist with boarding arrangements. Its baggage compartment can take folding wheelchairs that fit through the opening, but cannot accommodate larger items such as electric wheelchairs.
Loganair’s inter-island page similarly describes limited cabin and hold space. Its network links Kirkwall with Westray, Papa Westray, Eday, Stronsay, Sanday and North Ronaldsay. It asks passengers to raise assistance needs early with its dedicated local team.
The Civil Aviation Authority’s guidance recognises both passengers’ rights and aircraft constraints. In relation to disabled and less mobile passengers, it says refusal of carriage is permitted on grounds of applicable safety requirements or where an aircraft’s size or its doors prevent boarding. The regulator’s position is that all reasonable ways of providing access should first have been considered.
Where a booking is refused on those grounds, airlines must make reasonable efforts to propose an acceptable alternative. The CAA separately explains that airports are responsible for assistance through boarding and after arrival, while airlines provide the necessary assistance during the flight.
From prototype to a costed design
An earlier HITRANS report, prepared for its 23 April 2026 meeting, traced the current work to representations made on behalf of constituents in summer 2024. Loganair and Airtask had looked for existing equipment used elsewhere with the Islander, but had not identified a product that could readily be deployed or adapted.
Loganair worked with Edinburgh Napier University’s Transport Research Institute and Aurrigo through the UK Research and Innovation-funded HEART programme to develop a prototype. The subsequent proposal was for six months of further design work and user testing, producing a costed design ready for manufacture.
The April report said Transport Scotland had confirmed funding was unavailable in 2025/26 and invited the partners to resubmit for the new financial year. The April and September papers did not publish the sum requested for the device, an agreed deployment date or confirmation of operational approval.
Government policy had already recognised the obstacle. The Transport to Health Delivery Plan, published on 30 October 2024, included a commitment to examine improvements to Islander aircraft and associated airside facilities. It acknowledged that runway restrictions could limit the aircraft available. The December 2024 timescale listed in the plan was for completing a review of accessibility options.
The February 2025 First Minister’s briefing also recorded government support for Napier’s application to the National Centre for Accessible Transport’s innovation competition. The application concerned a project called Small Aircraft Lifting Device for Enhancing Accessibility. Officials described the university’s work as the most promising option then identified by the working group, which included councils, airlines, airports and transport bodies.
The journey to healthcare
On 22 September, Orkney MSP Liam McArthur said he had written to transport secretary Stephen Flynn and health secretary Angela Constance seeking renewed engagement. He invited them to see the prototype in Orkney. McArthur argued that boarding difficulties could prevent some island residents from attending routine appointments, particularly where there was no roll-on, roll-off ferry alternative. He also argued that improved access could reduce reliance on air ambulance transfers.
He raised the issue again in Parliament on 1 October, identifying North Ronaldsay as an example of an island without a roll-on, roll-off ferry. He told the chamber: “To put it bluntly, it is not a lifeline service if you cannot get on and off the plane.”
The wider Highlands and Islands Health and Transport Action Plan has received a separate £105,000 grant offer for 2026/27, covering a programme manager and a small working budget. HITRANS’ September report said a manager had been appointed and was due to start on 14 September, with an initial steering-group meeting intended for October.
Responding to the parliamentary debate, Flynn highlighted that funding to bring health boards, local authorities and transport organisations together. He said the action plan would help them coordinate service planning. His response announced no award for the lifting device and gave no funded start date for its next stage.
Sources
Health and Transport Action Plans Update
HITRANS, report dated 2 September 2026 for the partnership meeting of 11 September 2026
https://hitrans.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Item-6-Health-and-Transport-Action-Plan-HPB-11092026.pdf
Health and Transport Action Plan Update
HITRANS, report dated 14 April 2026 for the partnership meeting of 23 April 2026
https://hitrans.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Item-12-Health-and-Transport-Action-Plan-HPB-23042026.pdf
First Minister — Orkney Visit Briefing — 10 and 11 February 2025: Briefing Note 11, Annex A
Scottish Government, briefing for 10–11 February 2025
https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/foi-eir-release/2025/03-a/foi-202500452457/documents/foi-202500452457—information-released—annex/foi-202500452457—information-released—annex/govscot:document/FOI%2B202500452457%2B-%2BInformation%2BReleased%2B-%2BAnnex.pdf
Passengers with Reduced Mobility
Hebridean Air Services, undated; accessed 21 October 2026
https://www.hebrideanair.co.uk/prm
Orkney Inter-Isles
Loganair, undated; accessed 21 October 2026
https://www.loganair.co.uk/interisles/
Airline Accessibility Guidance — CAP 2990
Civil Aviation Authority, 7 August 2024
https://www.caa.co.uk/data-and-publications/publications/documents/content/cap2990/
Report a Problem with Assisted Travel
Civil Aviation Authority, undated; accessed 21 October 2026
https://www.caa.co.uk/air-passengers/assisted-travel/report-a-problem-with-assisted-travel/
Transport to Health: Delivery Plan — Commitments
Scottish Government, 30 October 2024
https://www.gov.scot/publications/transport-health-delivery-plan/pages/2/
McArthur Calls for Engagement on Accessibility of Lifeline Transport for Patients
Orkney Liberal Democrats, 22 September 2026
https://www.liammcarthur.org.uk/news/article/mcarthur-calls-for-engagement-on-accessibility-of-lifeline-transport-for-patients
Official Report: Highlands and Islands Regional Air Strategy
Scottish Parliament, 1 October 2026
https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/official-report/search-what-was-said-in-parliament/meeting-of-parliament-01-10-2026?iob=226122&meeting=20263
