Islay Airport

Islay Airport / Port-Adhair Ile
Characteristics
ICAO code	EGPI
IATA code	ILY
Coordinates	55 ° 40 ′ 52 "  N , 6 ° 15 ′ 25"  W Coordinates: 55 ° 40 ′ 52 "  N , 6 ° 15 ′ 25"  W
Height above MSL	17 m (56  ft )
Transport links
Distance from the city center	4 miles north of Port Ellen
Basic data
opening	1940
operator	Highlands and Islands Airports Limited
Terminals	1
Passengers	28,339 (2016)
Air freight	231 t (2016)
Flight movements	2,540 (2016)
Runways
13/31	1545 m × 46 m asphalt
08/26	635 m × 18 m asphalt

The Islay Airport ( IATA code : ILY , ICAO code : EGPI ; also Glenegedale Airport or Port-adhair Ile called) is the only airport on the Scottish Hebridean island of Islay . It is located in the south of the island near Laggan Bay, west of the small scattered settlement Glenegedale . The nearest towns are Port Ellen 6.5 km south and the island capital Bowmore eight kilometers north .

history

The island's first airstrip was built in 1928 and was located in the north of the island. At that time there was a regular flight connection to Campbeltown on the Kintyre Peninsula . The present airport was opened in 1940. During the Second World War , the airport was expanded for military use and equipped with asphalt runways. After the end of the war it was used as a passenger airport. Between 2007 and 2017, between 21,000 and 32,000 passengers used the airport each year. During the same period, around 3,000 aircraft movements were recorded annually.

Facilities

Two of Islay Airport's three runways are still in use. Both are paved and 1545 and 635 m long. There is an airport building with a tower.

Airlines and Destinations

Islay currently serves three destinations. There are several daily connections from Loganair to Glasgow and two connections from Hebridean Air twice a week to the neighboring island of Colonsay and Oban .

The following airlines operate regular scheduled and charter services at Islay Airport:

airline	Destination
Hebridean Air Services	Colonsay , Oban
Loganair	Edinburgh , Glasgow

Incidents

• On June 12, 1986 a de Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otter of the British Loganair ( aircraft registration G-BGPC ) was flown into the area on the approach to Islay Airport 6.8 kilometers southeast of the destination. Despite a instructed altitude of 1,100 meters (3,600 feet), the pilots continued to fly by sight in fog and drizzle until they crashed into a small hill at a height of 109 meters. In this CFIT ( Controlled flight into terrain ) one of the two pilots was killed; the other 15 inmates, including 14 passengers, survived.

• The airport hit the headlines on June 29, 1994 when the plane belonging to the British heir to the throne, Prince Charles, shot over the runway. On the flight from Aberdeen , Prince Charles acted as co-pilot of the BAe 146 himself when landing . However, the aircraft touched down on the runway too late and at too high a speed. Two tires burst during the braking process and the aircraft ultimately came to a stop on the other side of the runway. There were no injuries in the incident.

Web links

Commons : Islay Airport  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Islay Airport information from Highlands and Islands Airports Limited

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Passenger numbers at all airports in the United Kingdom. (PDF; 79 kB) In: caa.co.uk. Civil Aviation Authority , accessed May 13, 2017 . 
2. ↑ Freight figures from all UK airports. (PDF; 12 kB) In: caa.co.uk. Civil Aviation Authority , accessed May 13, 2017 . 
3. ↑ Aircraft movements at all UK airports. (PDF; 157 kB) In: caa.co.uk. Civil Aviation Authority , accessed May 13, 2017 . 
4. ^ Entry in the Gazetteer for Scotland
5. ↑ Information from the operating company
6. ↑ Passenger numbers at British airports
7. ↑ Records of flight movements at British airports
8. ^ Information from the Civil Aviation Authority
9. ↑ Information from the operating company
10. ^ Information from Hebridean Air
11. ↑ http://www.hial.co.uk/islay-airport/destinations/
12. ^ Accident report DHC-6 G-BGPC , Aviation Safety Network (English), accessed on March 9, 2020.
13. ↑ 1994/06/29 - RAF BAe 146 CC2 ZE700 ( Memento from January 27, 2010 in the Internet Archive )