Airline criticised for ‘shoddy reliability’ over Wick cancellation
Eastern Airways is facing criticism over its “shoddy reliability” after the late cancellation of a Wick/Aberdeen flight – within a week of government funding being renewed.
Passengers were waiting to fly from Wick John O’Groats Airport last Thursday afternoon when they were informed that the service had been cancelled about an hour before scheduled take-off.
No reason was given, and the options were to wait until the following day or go by taxi at the airline’s expense – a journey of about five hours down the A9 and A96.
Air links between Caithness and the Granite City were reinstated in April 2022 under a public service obligation (PSO) funded by the Scottish Government (£1 million a year) and Highland Council (£300,000). The continuation of government funding into the financial year 2025/26 was announced on Thursday, March 13, ending a period of uncertainty over the future of Wick flights beyond the end of the month.
Ben Hendry, who comes from Wick and lives in Aberdeen, flew north on Tuesday, March 18, and the 25-minute journey went without a hitch. However, he and other passengers were left inconvenienced and frustrated by the late cancellation two days later.
Two other flights were cancelled that week.
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Mr Hendry (38) is a senior journalist at the Press and Journal. In an opinion piece published by the Aberdeen-based regional daily newspaper, he writes: “It’s fair to say operator Eastern Airways has a bit of a reputation in Wick. Any mention of a flight is usually greeted with a wary ‘well, if it’s running’.
“So I shouldn’t have been surprised when, shortly after arriving at the terminal on Thursday afternoon, a worker trotted out a familiar refrain. ‘Flight’s cancelled, I’m afraid,’ he sighs about an hour before take-off.”
Mr Hendry was one of five passengers who took the option of going to Aberdeen in an eight-seater taxi.
“Of course, having to get a minibus from Wick to Aberdeen wasn’t the end of the world for me,” he writes. “But this situation can affect others far more adversely, from patients travelling to hospital appointments in Aberdeen to folk heading off for important business reasons.
“Just days before this palaver, the Scottish Government injected £1 million to keep these flights going for another year. You have to wonder if Holyrood higher-ups are already regretting the investment.”
Mr Hendry says that next time he travels to his home town he will drive. He will only consider flying again if it is apparent that the service has become “more robust”.
He adds: “Such shoddy reliability will inevitably see fewer and fewer people booking this flight and what had been hailed as an economic lifeline to the north will be cut off again.”
The airline has been approached for comment.
In 2023 Highland Council imposed contractual penalties on Eastern Airways after finding that the level of service between Wick and Aberdeen had fallen “below expectations” over a two-month period.
Last year a passenger who had experienced a late cancellation accused Eastern Airways of “not caring about Wick”, while two months ago a man who missed a hospital scan in Aberdeen for the same reason declared: “I wouldn’t take the chance of flying with Eastern again because my experience is that they cancel at the last minute.”
In November 2024 it was reported that changes to the Wick/Aberdeen flight schedule had brought “positive results”, with fewer cancellations and an increase in passenger numbers.
Welcoming the PSO announcement earlier this month, Highland Council leader Raymond Bremner described it as “a strong recognition from the Scottish Government of the importance of this service to the region”, while MSP Maree Todd spoke of the “crucial economic and social benefits” the route brings to the area.
The council confirmed this week that morning flights are no longer operating on a Monday or a Friday.
