The 80th anniversary of Barra Airport is being officially celebrated today (Mon).
Flights officially started in August 1936 with a timetable to Glasgow.
The vast sandy expanse of Traigh Mhòr is the only place in the world where scheduled flights land and take off from a beach.
The mile-
Complications can occur depending on the direction of the wind. Strong gusts from the east can delay the tide going out.
To mark the occasion, exclusive screenings of the 2016 film Whisky Galore will be shown with free entry for locals.
The original Ealing comedy was based on a novel written on Barra by Scottish author, Compton MacKenzie, after wartime whisky starved Barra folk liberated the alcohol cargo off the SS Politician which hit a reef near the island in 1941.
Screenings are at 6pm and 8pm at the airport.
The stunning approach to the airstrip is consistently voted on of the world’s most scenic landings in regular polls by private jet booking service, Private Fly.
The Scottish Government paid around £4 million for two specialised planes which can land on the sand.
Production of the Twin Otters had stopped but a Canadian firm bought out a modernised version which is the only main commercial passenger type plane with short take off and landing runs able to land on the tidal sands.
The investment saves money compared to the £20 million estimated cost of building a hard runway.
Celebrations to mark Barra Airport 80th
8 August 2016