Sarah Boyack: "Determined to see improvements"

Ms Boyack said the move would ensure safety standards were not being compromised.

The improvements are scheduled to be in place by the end of March.

Ms Boyack added: "I am determined that the standards, set by the regulatory and safety authorities, are met in full at the airports.

"The additional funding ensures that the standards are not compromised."

The airports to benefit include Barra, Benbecula, Campbeltown, Inverness, Islay, Kirkwall, Stornoway, Sumburgh, Tiree and Wick.

Air subsidy

They are run by Highlands and Islands Airports which is a Scottish Executive-owned company receiving a central government subsidy of �11.4m

Scotland's ministers have already come under pressure to subsidise lifeline air routes in the Highlands and Islands.

For some time Highland Council has expressed concerns that fares - which are said to be the highest in Europe - have been driving customers away.

It said the number of passengers using scheduled air services in the area has plummeted by a third in the last four years.

In March this year Chancellor Gordon Brown announced in his budget that he would abolish air passenger duty for flights from Highlands and Islands airports.

That move was welcomed by the Inverness Chamber of Commerce and the Scottish Council Development and Industry, which lobbied the Scottish Parliament to take action on fares on behalf of the area's social and business communities.