A warning has been issued that companies such as online gaming firms might pull out if a national airline is not formed.

The claim was made by Terry Liddiard, of the transport watchdog Travel Watch as he called for the government to look at starting a new airline.

He said the move would be needed to ensure flights to vital business hubs.

As the island awaited travellers from Guernsey to arrive aboard the Channel island’s own airline Aurigny Mr Liddiard said he had changed his view on the subject of a national airline.

But as he vowed Travel Watch would lobby for the move, a potential stumbling block emerged at the island government’s last media briefing as Chief Minister Howard Quayle said he was against the idea.

Mr Liddiard, who used to be the boss of Manx Airlines, told Business News: ‘Previously I always felt it would be an expensive business to set up an airline.

‘But the Covid-19 crisis changed all that.’

He said it would be difficult to get another airline to come in and set up the number of flights needed to get business recovery back on track. He warned that some companies in the island would be increasingly frustrated by the lack of services to the south east of the UK and London, for example.

He said: ‘There is a real danger of some companies leaving the island because of the lack of reasonable communications.’

He added that in the e-gaming world it would be relatively easy to move to other jurisdictions.

On the other hand there would be companies thinking of setting up here. ‘Then they realise that if they want to open a company in Guernsey for example and find that there are six or seven flights a day from Gatwick to the Channel Islands and we have got possibly one flight a day.’