Council leaders in Shetland have welcomed an out of court settlement with Sumburgh Airport operator HIAL which will see the local authority pay a reported £5.5 million to firm.
Highlands and Islands Airport Limited had initially been seeking £14million in damages from the authority for poor workmanship on the 2005 runway extension at Sumburgh.
HIAL had always claimed that the council was responsible for the poor standards of the engineering work at the £10million extension, leading its eastern end to crumble in the face of heavy winter seas.
In 2013, the Scottish government made £12million available for HIAL to carry out urgent repairs to the runway extension.
When visiting the isles in summer of that year, then First Minister Alex Salmond also urged both sides to settle out of court.
On Thursday, it emerged that the independent mediation process had finally been successful.
Shetland Islands Council leader Gary Robinson said everyone was pleased that the legal dispute was over.
“At the end of the day we have a functioning airport which is absolutely critical for the social and economic needs of the islands. That is the real positive for Shetland,” he said.
The £5.5 million will be paid from the council’s reserves.
In a statement, HIAL’s managing director Inglis Lyon said: “We are satisfied this long running matter has finally been resolved and that an acceptable settlement has been reached.”