The Department for Transport has unveiled a shortlist of 15 proposed airline routes that are in line for a share of £56m start-up cash, under its Regional Air Connectivity Fund.
The cash is available to airports with fewer than 5 million passengers per year and would cover three years of financial support, with £17.5m being made available to bids in 2015/16 and around £20m a year for each of the remaining years.
These initial bids have met the European Commission guidelines with regards to start-up aid and can now move forward to the second stage of bidding, ministers said.
Full list of airline routes
To be successful in the second round of bidding, which is open now, the operators will need to prove they will be 'commercially viable after that time', with the planned links assessed over whether they provide maximum value for money for the taxpayer.
Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin said: 'Smaller airports are vital for bringing the country together and creating new international opportunities for their local areas. The shortlist we are publishing today shows the potential for smaller airports to create jobs and drive growth. Aviation is one of the UK’s economic success stories and our investment ensures it is shared out across the whole country.'
The shortlisted routes include Dundee-Amsterdam, Doncaster Sheffield-Frankfurt and Newquay-Leeds.
Launched in June 2013, the fund has already supported strategic routes from Dundee and Newquay into London.
The final announcement of winning bids to be made in November 2015.
