More than 100 passengers set to travel to Inverness last night were left stranded in London after their flight was unexpectedly cancelled.
The British Airways flight was set to leave Heathrow Airport at 7.15pm yesterday and arrive in the Highlands an hour and 40 minutes later.
But after boarding the plane, passengers were told their trip would no longer be going ahead.
The reason for the delay – that subsequently turned into a cancellation – is understood to be paperwork discrepancies which caused security issues at Heathrow Airport.
Customers had been stuck on board the plane for about an hour when they were informed they will have to wait the night before they could go home.
Flight cancelled due to Inverness Airport opening hours
While the crew was eventually given the go-ahead to take off, they were forced to cancel the flight as Inverness Airport was closed.
A British Airways spokesman said all passengers were offered accommodation, as well as tickets for an alternative flight to get to Inverness.
He said: “We’ve apologised to customers for the delay to their travel plans. We have provided hotel accommodation and re-booked them onto the next available flight to get them to their destination.”
A spokesman for Highlands and Islands Airports, which operates Inverness Airport, said: “Following some earlier issues with the flight at Heathrow, the British Airways team requested an extension to the opening hours at Inverness Airport.
“Unfortunately, we were not able to accommodate the request.”
Conversation