Planning consent has been approved by Orkney Council’s Planning Authority subject to a number of conditions being met, and it is hoped that work will be able to start on site this summer.

Plans are also in the pipeline for a new airfield terminal building on Stronsay.

The contract for both, which is worth £964,000, has been awarded to R.S. Rendall. The Scottish Government is providing grant funding of £216,000 with the remainder coming from the council’s General Fund, capital budget.

The existing terminal buildings are over 30 years old, in need of maintenance, and no longer fit for purpose.

The Council’s service manager for property and capital structure, Glen Thomson said: “The need for these new terminal buildings has been identified by the Council to ensure the safe and resilient operation of airfield infrastructure and to maintain the lifeline air service for the island.

“The single storey design ensures the character, scale, massing and materials are appropriate and it is simple, practical and sustainable.

“A key part of the design was to carefully orientate the building so both ends of the runway are clearly visible from the watch room, ensuring the fire crew can respond to an incident on the airfield within the two minutes mandated by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).”

Parking issues will also be resolved with plans for ten spaces on site – which includes two electric vehicle charge points. A road access and bike shelter also feature in the plans.

The aspiration is for Westray and Eday airfields to be replaced in the coming years.