Colin McAllister Retires after Two Decades Piloting Orkney’s Inter-isles Service

That the Parliament congratulates Colin McAllister on his retirement after 22 years of serving the inter-isles air service in Orkney as Captain of the Briton Norman (BN) Islander; understands the service connects seven of Orkney’s outer north isles, including the world’s shortest commercial flight, between Westray and Papa Westray, which takes around 2 minutes; notes that Colin’s personal record for completing the flight on this route is a remarkable 58 seconds; considers that Colin has demonstrated incredible dedication to serving and connecting the island communities in Orkney, on a service that represents a genuine lifeline to those communities; believes that Colin is a popular and well-respected member of the Loganair team and one who is on first name terms for an astonishing number of isles' residents, past and present, many of whom were on hand to wish him a happy retirement after he landed his final flight on 5 September 2025, arriving in Kirkwall from North Ronaldsay; believes that, as well as residents, Colin has transported thousands of visitors to and from the islands, including the actor, Saoirse Ronan, and her colleagues as they worked on the award-winning film, The Outrun, in which Colin made a cameo appearance in the cockpit of the BN Islander; understands that, earlier in his career, Colin also flew Orkney’s air ambulance; acknowledges that, while providing this service to islanders and visitors is very much a team effort, it has also relied heavily on the expert and empathic leadership provided by Colin over the past two decades; hopes that he will continue to find ways to remain involved in aviation in Orkney in future, and wishes Colin well on his thoroughly well-deserved retirement.