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Papa Westray Airport is a small council-run airstrip serving the northernmost inhabited island of the Orkney group, 24 nautical miles north of Kirkwall. It is chiefly known for hosting one end of the world's shortest scheduled air service, Loganair's inter-island hop across to Westray, and offers a distinctive short-field VFR destination for visiting pilots.
Papa Westray Airport is a small public aerodrome on the island of Papa Westray in the Orkney Islands, operated by Orkney Islands Council. It is best known for being one of the two airports linked by the shortest scheduled flight in the world, a Loganair inter-island service to Westray Airport that covers barely two and a half kilometres. For a simulator pilot the appeal lies in its remote island setting, short grass and hardcore strips, and the novelty of flying the same short inter-island routes used by the real-world service.
The airfield lies on Papa Westray, in the far north of the Orkney Islands, around 24 nautical miles (44 kilometres) north of Kirkwall. It sits within uncontrolled Class G airspace typical of the Northern Isles, with Westray Airport close by across the sound and North Ronaldsay and Kirkwall forming the other legs of the local inter-island network.
Papa Westray has three physical runways. The main runway, 03/21, is 1,556 feet long with a graded hardcore surface and is lit. Runway 17/35 is 1,347 feet long with a grass surface, and the shortest, 06/24, is 996 feet long, also grass. Field elevation is 85 feet.
No air-ground or air traffic control communication frequency is officially published for Papa Westray, and the aerodrome has no navigational aids or instrument approach procedures; there is no ILS. Pilots planning a visit should check current radio and approach procedures in the UK Aeronautical Information Publication before flight.
Specific published circuit heights or joining instructions are not detailed in available references. The aerodrome is not licensed for night use, and as an uncontrolled Class G airfield pilots should expect to operate on a see-and-avoid basis, remaining alert for the frequent short inter-island flights operating to and from Westray, North Ronaldsay and Kirkwall.
Papa Westray itself, lying immediately north of Westray across the narrow sound, is the principal visual reference for locating the field; no additional published visual reference points are noted in available sources.
Papa Westray Airport holds a CAA Ordinary Licence, number P542, permitting public transport flights and flying instruction as authorised by its licensee, Orkney Islands Council; it is not licensed for night use. The airfield's enduring claim to fame is its role as one end of the world's shortest scheduled air route, the Loganair inter-island hop to Westray, a flight that in good conditions takes under a minute in the air. In March 2025 the airfield was highlighted by a reader of The Economist as among the most memorable small airports, noted for its close proximity to grazing sheep and lack of crowds.
The airfield continues to be served by Loganair's inter-island network, with scheduled flights to Kirkwall, North Ronaldsay and Westray, the latter forming the celebrated short hop. It remains licensed for public transport of passengers and for flying instruction under Orkney Islands Council's ownership, though it is not licensed for night operations.
