Members of Highland Council’s planning committee will this week be asked to help lobby the Scottish Government and its agencies over plans to reopen an airport on Skye.
Hopes are high that the Broadford Airstrip could finally be brought back to life, three decades after it closed to regular services.
Earlier this month, councillors on the Skye and Raasay Committee gave backed the proposal after a business study found it could be worth up to £47million to the local economy.
The study will go before the full planning committee on Wednesday.
Transport Scotland said any investment would be up to the council but pledged to discuss the proposal and help the authority if it wanted to apply for subsidies through a Public Service Obligation.
The airstrip, at Ashaig, opened in 1972 to serve as a gateway to the island with Loganair operating a scheduled route to Glasgow until 1988, when the service was disbanded.
A campaign by islanders to reopen the facility has gained momentum.
The report considers two options, the key difference being the size of terminal and aprons needed to accommodate different sized aircraft.
Analysis found that 23,800 passengers would use a service between Glasgow and Skye each year, and that operating a 19-seat Twin Otter aircraft would provide best value.
The costs over a 30-year period were estimated at between £19.4million and £23.1million, while the economic benefits were projected to be about double the expenditure, at between £39.7million and £46.8million.
The business case report sets out a series of activities within a two-year programme to take the project forward.
These include clarification about airspace requirements, initial design and discussions with planning and roads authorities and consultation events and the submission of an application.
The committee has been requested to approve the proposed development activities and approve allocation of funding of up to £30,000 as a share of the costs with Hitrans and HIE.
