Loganair will take over the Liverpool route formerly operated by Flybe, from Thursday this week.

Infrastructure Minister Ray Harmer made the announcement in the House of Keys this morning.

He said his staff had ’worked day and night’ to reinstate services following the demise of Flybe last week.

He said: ’As from Thursday, Loganair will operate twice-daily scheduled services to Liverpool seven days a week.’

Mr Harmer said this was an 'interim solution' while negotiations continue over the routes formerly operated by Flybe.

He said he had put Liverpool ’top of the list’ because of the needs of the patient transfer service.

He said there was a number of operators interested in taking over the Manchester and Birmingham routes.

But he said there was a real concern that fear of coronavirus ’will destroy airlines and their routes’.

Mr Harmer said an announcement on these routes will be made as soon as something is agreed and hopefully this will be in the ’next week or so’.

Treasury Minister Alfred Cannan told the Keys that Flybe owed the Department of Infrastructure £303,245 in unpaid landing fees.

He said he was unable to give a figure on how much was owed in air passenger duty as Customs and Excise was waiting submission of the most recent return in respect of that tax.

Mr Cannan said a Flybe Bombardier Dash aircraft with a book value of £4m had been arrested.