Airlink (helicopter shuttle service)

Airlink
Airlink Sikorsky S-61N at Gatwick
Founded1978
Commenced operations9 June 1978
Ceased operations6 February 1986
Fleet sizeOne Sikorsky S-61
Destinations
Parent companyBritish Caledonian Airways and British Airways Helicopters
This article is about the defunct helicopter service between Gatwick and Heathrow airports. For other uses, see Airlink (disambiguation).

Airlink was the brand name of a helicopter shuttle service which ran between London's two main airports, Gatwick and Heathrow, between 1978 and 1986. Operated jointly by British Caledonian Airways and British Airways Helicopters using a Sikorsky S-61 owned by the British Airports Authority, the "curious and unique operation"[1] connected the rapidly growing airports in the years before the M25 motorway existed. Although at one point the service was granted a licence to operate until 1994, the Secretary of State for Transport intervened and revoked the licence with effect from February 1986—by which time the continued existence of the link had become "a highly controversial issue" debated by Members of Parliament, airlines, airport operators, local authorities and many other interest groups.[2] No similar service has operated between the airports since Airlink's cessation.

  1. ^ Thomson 1990, p. 355.
  2. ^ Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). House of Commons. 13 May 1986. col. 679–686.