Highlands and Islands Airport Limited (HIAL) is investing £1.2m (US$1.6m) in additional mitigation measures to help ensure passenger safety as its airports gear up for the resumption of scheduled flights and a gradual return to normal service this summer.
Self-service check-in points will be made available at Stornoway, Kirkwall and Sumburgh airports, which will be in addition to the existing check-in facilities. Boarding-card readers and body scanners are being installed at Sumburgh and Inverness to give customers and staff additional confidence and reassurance. HIAL will also install contactless customer feedback terminals in all its airports.
All HIAL airports were made Covid-19 secure with the early adoption of a comprehensive series of mitigation measures including effective passenger management, enhanced cleaning programs, the use of sanitizer and the introduction of a broad range of PPE.
Managing director Inglis Lyon said, “Since early March 2020, HIAL’s priority has been to protect staff and passengers while continuing to maintain the viability of the lifeline services.
“Although the pandemic will continue to have a significant impact on everyone’s lives and considerable impact on our business, we are pleased that some domestic scheduled flights have recommenced and there is some optimism that international travel can resume with appropriate safeguards. With that in place, we can look to rebuild passenger numbers.
“The pandemic has underlined the crucial role HIAL’s airports continue to play in maintaining connectivity for our communities in this remote part of Scotland. Our staff continue to demonstrate impressive resilience and an extraordinary commitment to their communities despite extremely challenging circumstances.
“Our new, additional mitigation measures will help ensure efficient operations at our airports and will allow passengers to travel with additional reassurance and comfort.”
