Scatsta Airport

Scatsta Airport is a public, commercial airport which is situated on the island of Mainland, in the region of Shetland, in Scotland. More preciously, the Scatsta Airport is located just within 17 nautical miles (31 km; and 20 mi) at the north of Lerwick, and around five mi (8.0 km) at the southwest of Sullom Voe Terminal. The airport codes are IATA: SCS, and for ICAO, it is EGPM; Besides, the SCS airport a medium-size airport that in the United Kingdom-based, right in the region of Scotland.

Scatsta Airport

General Information

Scatsta Airport is a public, commercial airport which is situated on the island of Mainland, in the region of Shetland, in Scotland. More preciously, the Scatsta Airport is located just within 17 nautical miles (31 km; and 20 mi) at the north of Lerwick, and around five mi (8.0 km) at the southwest of Sullom Voe Terminal. The airport codes are IATA: SCS, and for ICAO, it is EGPM; Besides, the SCS airport a medium-size airport that in the United Kingdom-based, right in the region of Scotland.

Scatsta Aerodrome holds a CAA Ordinary Licence (known with Number P777). The CAA Ordinary Licence allows airline flights for the public transport of passengers, as well as for flying as authorized by BP Exploration Operating Company Limited. Scatsta Airport is operated via Serco UK and Europe of BP.

History of Scatsta Airport

WW2 Shetland - RAF Scatsta.

Scatsta Airport was founded in 1940, first as RAF Scatsta, in full a Royal Air Force fighter plane base, which was the most northerly located base in the British Isles that supported the Coastal Command flying operations at RAF Sullom Voe.

The construction of the airport started in Spring 1940. As a result of the installation, SCS airport received two runways. One was around 1,400 yd (1,300 m) long with 130 degrees, and the other runway was about 1,510 yd (1,380 m) long with 250 degrees. The first runway construction of the SCS was finished in April 1941, and the Zetland County Council was the main contractor for the airport construction. Later, in November 1944, Scatsta Airport was used as a support base for Lancasters squadron 617,known as the famous "Dam Busters," that was led by Wing Commander J. B. Tait, upon Operation Catechism, which sank and bombed the Tirpitz near Håkøy Island, in Tromso. After World War II, except for the landing of a US Coast Guard HC-130 Hercules, Scatsta Aerodrome lay dormant on 24 May 1969, along with the LORAN navigation station, which was established at the end of the northwest side of runway 13/31. The airfield was then abandoned right after World War II. Still, soon, in 1978, it was reinstated as a civilian airport to support the oil industry of Shetland, and the oil terminal of the Sullom Voe in particular.

The capacity of Scatsta Airport

Scatsta Airport, according to the statistics of Annual Traffic, handled around 174,934 passengers in 2018, while the SCS airport at the same year, produced approximately 8,513 aircraft movements. The runway of the SCS Airport length is estimated to as 4,462; Whereas the same runway elevation, it reaches 73.

In August 2018, Scatsta Airport became the sixth largest airport in whole Scotland and was ranked by its international passengers.This classification was based on helicopter flights that run to and from oil rigs in the Norwegian and to Faroes sectors of the North Atlantic and the North Sea oil region. The only fixed-wing route of the Scatsta Airport, which is operating regular charter from Scatsta's airfield, is around 7 or 8 times daily shuttle right to and from Aberdeen and ferrying offshore crew to Scatsta region for onward travel via helicopter.

Scatsta Airport Flights

Scatsta Airport operates oil service flights and so-called "civilian" flights that can be judged from the fact that the SCS airport service area has no bar available. Still, the nearest bar is accessible within three mi (4.8 km) away. Besides, there is no bus or taxi service, and nor the three large rooms for passengers using a helicopter for clothing their suits before embarking. The first flight of the day that departs from Scatsta Airport to Aberdeen has no passengers from offshore and can have a maximum of up to about 60 passengers during the peak of the season. However, the figure is more common and frequent between 15 and 25 as an approximate average of each day. Eastern Airways is operating it via using ATR 72 aircraft.

The Scatsta Airport has just undergone some significant upgrades as an increasing investment that has been provided in order to support the offshore rigs of the North Sea. Due to that fact, the Scatsta Airport was seen to hold a new Control Tower Building, shortly referred to as CTB, that went in progress on 28 January 2013. This new upgrade also included a new Terminal building of the SCS, along with the Distance Measuring Equipment (shortly referred to as DME) to runway No. 06.

Recent News

On 4 March 2020, Scatsta Airport’s official sources announced that it would be closing to the public only during the summer for the foreseeable future, along with a loss of up to a maximum of 50 jobs, both in and around the SCS airport. Concerning the passenger flights that run from Scatsta will be then relocated to Sumburgh Airport.