Scottish airports could benefit from an extra 100 flights a week to and from London under plans to ring-fence domestic slots on the proposed third runway at Heathrow.
The additional capacity would encourage competition between airlines and bring down prices for Scottish passengers, Aviation Minister Baroness Sugg said on a visit to Glasgow Airport.
She confirmed the UK Government will act if required to reserve around 15% of new slots at Heathrow for domestic flights which would guarantee connections with Scotland.
Public Service Obligations (PSOs), which already exist to protect flights from one city to another, would be put in place to protect routes if required. It could also make flights cheaper, with PSOs exempt from Air Passenger Duty.
The third runway issue has proved controversial south of the border but Baroness Sugg believes the proposals, which will be voted on by MPs on Monday, have support across Scotland.
She said: "I've just been meeting with Scottish business people who are hugely supportive, and obviously Glasgow Airport who are too. I was in Inverness a couple of weeks ago and met with business people there who are really supportive.
"I think we've got great cross-party political support with the SNP being clear (in support) but it's going to be down to the Scottish MPs voting on Monday, and we really want to make sure that they do vote for Heathrow because it has taken a while, we are keen to get on with it and we think it will really benefit Scotland.
"What we've seen in recent years is domestic flights squeezed out of Heathrow because there is so much demand there, so if we don't have an expanded Heathrow then we are going to see more of that, so there is a cost to not expanding too.
"Monday is the day, so we hope that all the Scottish MPs are going to get behind it and vote for it."
Baroness Sugg added: "Although Heathrow is situated in the south east of England, the benefits of expansion will be felt throughout Scotland.
"We're reserving 15% of the new slots at Heathrow for domestic use and that's going to mean about 100 new weekly flights for Scotland.
"We'll be reserving those slots to make sure that they continue to be used for Scotland.
"It will be the whole country - we've had lots of interest in Inverness, Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh - so we really think it will benefit the whole of Scotland."
Derek Provan, chief executive of AGS airports, which owns Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton airports, said increased Heathrow links are "imperative for Scottish business".
He said: "As an example, Glasgow has 10 flights a day and Aberdeen seven to London and they are full most days, and 40% of those passengers are connecting through London somewhere else globally that we're unable to support with a direct route.
"This opportunity that allows us to have effectively ring-fenced extra flights from Scotland to London is imperative for Scottish business."
Flybe and easyJet have already outlined new routes they would expect to serve from an expanded Heathrow, with extra competition on existing routes potentially lowering fares by up to 30%.
Mr Provan added: "Where you've got greater capacity, that drives the opportunity for greater competition where you have more than one airline flying that route, allowing cheaper flights, more options and availability."
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