Impact of loss of BIH Helicopter Service - Cornishman 28 Sep 2012

The Cornishman ran an item in the 27th Sep edition of the paper exploring the impact of the withdrawal of the BIH helicopter service on 1 Nov 2012.  The items include comments from Penzance Chamber of Commerce as we as Marian Bennett, Councillor and spokesperson for FRIST and Robert Dorrien-Smith, owner of Tresco.

Read the Cornishman article here.


 

Comment.

The helicopter is the backbone of passenger transport to the mainland in the winter as there is no ferry service and the fixed wing aircraft service is vulnerable to disruption by adverse weather which is relatively common in the winter months (fog, low cloud, strong cross winds and water logging of Lands End Airport's grass strip).  Getting on an off the islands in the winter months is going to be highly uncertain.  There are also implications for the summer months as the ferry is restricted to operate only in fair conditions and the fixed wing service is less reliable than the helicopter as far as weather disruption is concerned.