The flight to Barra has been on my bucket-list for a while now, so I was delighted when Loganair introduced Avios redemptions, as well as holding a half-price offer in June 2025. I couldn’t resist, so I booked myself a weekend trip to Barra for November 2025.
Loganair runs flights between Glasgow and Barra two to three times a day, and these have the honor of departing from Gate 1. My trip got off to a somewhat rocky start, however, as we were informed at the gate that the aircraft was 205kg overweight, apparently due to passengers checking in too much luggage. Three people had to be removed from the flight, and as there were understandably no volunteers (one man had been trying to get home to Barra for two days at that point due to bad-weather cancellations), the last three people to check in were offloaded.
Our aircraft for the 76 minute flight over to Barra was G-BVVK, a 45 year old De Havilland Canada DHC-6-300 Twin Otter. Leaving the gate, I was surprised to find that the Twin Otter doesn’t actually require a pushback–the engines can run the props backward!
Unsurprisingly for such a small aircraft we were up in the air very quickly. Despite the Highlands we flew over hiding behind clouds for most of the flight, conditions finally cleared up just as we neared the Outer Hebrides.
Avgeeks will know that Barra Airport is unique for being the only commercial airport in the world to use a beach as its runway. The final approach and landing in Barra was absolutely glorious with the sun coming out at exactly the right time. Despite touching down on sand rather than tarmac, it was surprisingly smooth!
Barra Airport is located in Eoligarry in the north of the island, linked by a twice daily (Monday-Saturday) bus service that runs to the main settlement, Castlebay. All the roads on Barra are single-track, perhaps unsurprising given the population of around a thousand.
From Castlebay I wandered down to the Vatersay causeway (linking Barra with its neighboring island to the south) before following part of the Hebridean Way up Ben Tangaval and over to Tangasdale. Unsurprisingly it was quite windy at the summit, as Barra is the last piece of land for 3000km before North America. Barely managing to stand up straight at the trig point, it really did feel like I’d reached the end of the world.
When I arrived at my hostel in Castlebay after dark I discovered that they had actually already closed for the season and forgotten about my advance booking. Luckily the owner, Chris, lived next door and was able to let me in, so I ended up with the entire hostel to myself! Castlebay boasts the single Co-op on the island, whose peak times are on the five evenings a week in winter just after the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry arrives, because the vegetables get restocked!
Buses do not operate on Sundays on Barra, which meant I was prepared to walk the 16 km in the rain to the airport the next morning for my flight back. But I got lucky again as it turned out that Chris was heading to the airport anyway to pick up his wife, so he graciously offered to take me along with him.
I was therefore able to spend the morning sheltering from the rain in the living room, gazing out at the slowly brightening sky as I finished off a coding assignment.
Chris has lived on Barra since 2001, so it was interesting to hear his thoughts and opinions on the island. He says the main change has been the increase in houses at the same time as the stagnating population. Some mainlanders have moved over, but often don’t stay for the admittedly bleak winters.
Barra Airport hosts a lovely cafe and I quite enjoyed the pumpkin soup I got!
My return flight was operated by G-HIAL, owned by Transport Scotland, and bearing a Scottish flag livery. My choice of 3A offered me a better view out the front (in this 19-seater aircraft there is no cockpit door).
We managed to have good weather until we passed over Arrochar, at which point the forewarned turbulence arrived and it was a bumpy landing into Glasgow.
Flying between places often involves some crazy contrasts, but going from stepping onto an aircraft with sandy boots and taking off from a beach on an island in the middle of nowhere, to arriving at an international airport and taxiing past an A380 is a whole new level.
