Also in the news / Sumburgh incident, SRT price rise, battery storage consultation and more…
THE MAIN runway at Sumburgh airport was blocked for almost two hours on Thursday morning after a 30-seater Eastern Airways Jetstream 41 aircraft developed a problem.
The airline has been contacted twice on Tuesday afternoon but has yet to respond to queries from Shetland News.
It appears that the aircraft developed a front wheel steering problem.
SHETLAND Recreational Trust says it is increasing its membership and ‘pay and play’ fees from 1 April.
“Whilst increasing prices isn’t something we enjoy doing, it is essential due to the continued rise in costs associated to operating our facilities,” it said on social media.
The cost of a swim in pools for example will rise to £5.20. At the moment the price of swimming in pools outside Lerwick is £3.25, and £4.90 in the Clickimin.
Details of the new prices can be found here.
A COMMUNITY engagement session will be held on Friday offering local residents a chance to hear about a proposed battery energy storage system in Lerwick.
The event, which will explore Zenobe’s proposal, will take place at Islesburgh in Lerwick on Friday between 10am and 1pm.
Zenobe is proposing a battery storage system behind the Ocean Kinetics building in Lerwick which would enable Shetland to keep its lights on in the event of an outage with the planned HVDC transmission link.
It would kick into action whilst Lerwick Power Station moves out of standby mode and into full operation.
Zenobe’s proposal is separate to Statkraft’s Greener Grid Park plans.
SSE has been running a procurement process for a “Shetland standby” solution, and more than one proposal has been submitted.
HIGHLANDS and Islands MSP Emma Roddick has welcomed the Scottish Government’s official apology to those affected by historic forced adoption practices, in one of Nicola Sturgeon’s final acts as first minister.
The SNP MSP, along with Monica Lennon, Miles Briggs, Maggie Chapman, and Alex Cole-Hamilton, was a signatory of a 2022 cross-party letter to the Scottish Government calling for such an apology to be made.
The apology comes after an estimated 60,000 unmarried women were forced into giving up their babies for adoption between the 1950s and 1970s in Scotland.
Roddick said “addressing historic injustices such as forced adoption practices is incredibly important”.
ENERGY company TotalEnergies is the latest firm to be confirmed as one of the host port sponsors for this summer’s Tall Ships Races.
The company will be providing volunteers from within its own staff to help deliver the event, which stops in Lerwick from 26-29 July.
It will also be sponsoring the official branded clothing to be worn by stewards, marshals and event site volunteers.
TotalEnergies’ West of Shetland asset director Jeannie Dannock said: “Our sponsorship aligns really well with our aim to provide opportunities and support for young people and to be an active participant in the communities in which we operate.”
MSP Beatrice Wishart says she has had success in getting Shetland included in the logo for the new David Attenborough series Wild Isles.
The iPlayer logo had omitted Shetland despite filming and the opening scenes of the series taking place there.
Wishart wrote to the BBC to highlight the omission, with the corporation responding that a replacement with a “better image” would happen as soon as possible.
LABOUR MSP for the Highlands and Islands Rhoda Grant has again criticised Loganair for suspending flights between HIAL airports after work to rule industrial action was announced.
The industrial action has now been called off after a pay dispute was resolved.
Loganair confirmed it would be reintroducing flights on the affected routes, but only a week earlier than planned – from 24 April.
This is because the airline needs a “lead time” to allow passengers to book onto the flights.
But Grant said she believed this was a poor excuse, and added the initial decision to temporarily suspend flights between HIAL airports was an “appalling business decision”.
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