Direct flights are helping firms to take off

Research carried out for Scottish Enterprise suggests the new Glasgow to Dubai route alone could cut costs for firms by �10m per year.

Emirates is just one of a number of airlines to start flying from Scotland in the past year.

Direct services save businesses north of the border time and money by cutting out the connecting flight from London.

The new Dubai flight, which cuts out a connecting flight from Heathrow, also connects companies to a major hub for Asia and Australia, putting them closer to Scotland's export markets.

Cash boost

As many as 45 new direct routes have started from Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen in the past year.

Donal Dowds, managing director of BAA Scotland, said: "The use of big hubs is important and therefore some of the big international routes, not surprisingly, are to Heathrow, which is a big hub, to Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt and increasingly New York and Dubai."

Twenty have been partly paid for by the Scottish Executive's Route Development Fund.

Airport operator BAA is also spending �95m over five years to help attract more routes to and from Scotland.

New air routes from Scotland to Spain, Italy and Germany were launched in September by operators Ryanair.

The airline unveiled flights from Glasgow Prestwick to Murcia, near Alicante, Hamburg and Dusseldorf and the Italian city of Pisa.

Direct services

The services were partially funded by the Route Development Fund.

It was set up in November 2002 to help secure new direct air services to Scotland and encourage inbound tourism.

An executive spokeswoman said: "The route development fund was set up to introduce more air routes to Scotland.

"The aim was to bring the world closer to Scotland and strengthen Scotland as a key player in business.