More than 50,000 passengers a year are lost from Inverness Airport to other Scots airports due to a lack of a direct service to Heathrow, a survey by SCDI, Inverness Chamber of Commerce and the Federation of Small Businesses says.
The report shows firms' reliance on the ability to get to London and back in a day.
EasyJet plans flights between Inverness and Gatwick after agreeing to buy Flybe slots.
SCDI's Highlands & Islands manager Fraser Grieve said: "The scare following the announcement that Flybe was to sell its slots at Gatwick has rightly brought organisations together to look at how best to address this issue in future, and we are grateful easyJet are able to provide a service which meets passenger demand and the key commuter service to London."
Stewart Nicol, chief executive of Inverness Chamber of Commerce, said: "The loss of the Heathrow service many years ago was a real blow and the result that over 50,000 passengers a year could be lost from Inverness to other Scottish airports demonstrates how vital it is that we protect our current Gatwick link."
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