Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Travel
Barney Riley & Milo Boyd

What it's like to travel on the world's shortest flight - and it's in the UK

Britain is home to the world's shortest and most expensive flights per mile.

The journey from Papa Westray and Westray may not be one of the most popular in the UK, but it is an absolute lifeline for residents of the two Orkney islands, they claim.

The flight route lasts for just one minute and 14 seconds and covers 1.7miles as reported by the Daily Record.

While some have criticised islanders for using a fuel hungry plane to go such a short distance, they say they'd face a 20 minute boat ride over choppy waters if they didn't.

Local authorities have mooted the idea of building a bridge to connect the two islands but nothing has been finalised so far.

The total journey takes less than two minutes (Noel Philips / SWNS)

Travel blogger Noel Philips, 41, recently shot a video of the flight, which is considered to be one of the most expensive in the world per mile with a price tag of £17.

The route takes a triangle formation from Papa Westray to Westray and then the Kirkwall.

Noel, from Mansfield, Derbyshire, said: "I travelled to the Orkney Islands to fly on the world's shortest passenger flight, which runs between the Orkney islands of Westray and Papa Westray.

"When I got to Westray, I stayed there overnight to explore, and flew back to Kirkwall the following morning, once again taking the world's shortest flight along the way.

"I love flying on little flights like this and travelling around some of the world's most remote communities.

"Scotland has so many of these tiny flights connecting the remote communities in the islands, and living in the UK it's so easy to travel to.

"The planes that serve these islands are quite small, they're like getting onboard a minibus. You can't take any hand baggage onboard, it all has to go in the boot when you get onboard.

"It's very popular with tourists and aviation enthusiasts. On my flights were several people who were staying on the islands and just wanted to experience the world's shortest flight.

"But it's also relied upon for locals to be able to connect with Kirkwall and be able to leave or return to the islands."

The flight connects up to Orkney islands (Noel Philips / SWNS)
Noel went on the mini ride (Noel Philips / SWNS)

Noel is no stranger to the world of transport and has travelled on some of the planet's more obscure flights, trains and transport links.

He has travelled across the globe and reviewed the likes of the world's "longest", "worst" and most "dangerous" flights.

"I've been a full-time travel vlogger for three years now," he said.

"Before this, I worked as an IT consultant and did YouTube as my side hobby. I've been an aviation enthusiast since a very young age, and I started sharing my passion with others via YouTube in 2013.

"I was fortunate enough to be able to take it full time in 2019 when my channel grew to such a size that it was taking up more of my time than my full-time job!

"Since then I've travelled around the world and made videos on every continent - apart from Antarctica.

"I consider myself very lucky to have what I think is the best job in the world - travelling around the world flying on unique airlines and pursuing my passion, then coming home to spend months at home with my family.

"I still have more countries to visit and more airlines to fly. Every time I think I've 'done it all,' I find another experience that goes on the list."

The flight can carry up to nine passengers and operates twice a day with Loganair.

It gets people across the water in close to one minute, with the record being 53 seconds.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.