Direct flights between Aberdeen and the Norwegian capital Oslo take off today.
The new route – from bmi regional – is the latest in a series of positive moves by the Aberdeen-based airline in the Scottish and Norwegian markets.
Demand from the oil and gas industry and dialogue with key companies have been fundamental to the decision to launch the service, while leisure travellers can take advantage of direct access between two city destinations.
The company launched flights between Aberdeen and Kristiansund in Norway at the end of August and will operate direct flights between Stavanger and Harstad/ Evenes and Tromsø in the far north of Norway from January 2014 – becoming the first non-Scandinavian airline to launch scheduled domestic flights in Norway and directly linking the country’s fastest-growing regions for the first time.
Cathal O’Connell, chief executive of bmi regional said: “Aberdeen and Oslo are strategic hubs for the oil and gas industry and our new service will offer significant time and efficiency savings for businesses in north-east Scotland and Norway.
“We are committed to working with industry to develop connectivity that supports business growth out of Aberdeen, in terms of both scheduled operations and our charter offering. We successfully launched Aberdeen to Kristiansund in August and we will commence domestic flights in Norway in 2014.”
Business and civic leaders welcomed the introduction of a direct air connection to Oslo.
Ian Armstrong, regional director at the Scottish Council for Development and Industry (SCDI) said: “As well as a further direct link into Norway, which is a key trading partner for the north-east, it will also give greater access to Norwegian Government institutions as well as creating leisure opportunities.”