OpenTransport services

Provision for Public Service Obligation Air Services[E15]

Lochgilphead, United KingdomArgyll and Bute Council[E1]

In plain English

What they want: Argyll and Bute Council is seeking to appoint a single operator to deliver Public Service Obligation (PSO) Air Services connecting Oban with the islands of Coll, Colonsay and Tiree. The Contract is for a four-year period commencing on 16 September 2027 and ending on 15 September 2031.
Who can bid: No restrictions are stated in the notice data. The tender documents may set more.
Deadline: Buyer's deadline: 15 Jan 2027, 12:00 UTC. UTC: 15 Jan 2027, 12:00 UTC.
Published 23 Oct 2026.
Value: GBP 1,977,796
Buyer: Argyll and Bute CouncilSee what else this buyer buys and when.
How to apply: Through the buyer's official process. Open the original notice on UK Find a Tender (OCDS) (opens in a new tab) ↗
Tender documents: The tender documents for this notice are on the buyer's own portal, usually behind a free supplier registration. We link to them and do not fetch them, so the report is based on the notice only.

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Deadline[E5]: 15 Jan 2027, 12:00 UTC
Value[E16]: GBP 1,977,796
Published[E12]: 23 Oct 2026
Procedure[E11]: Open procedure
Source: UK Find a Tender (OCDS) (opens in a new tab)
Last checked: 14 hours ago

About the requirement

From the notice

Argyll and Bute Council is seeking to appoint a single operator to deliver Public Service Obligation (PSO) Air Services connecting Oban with the islands of Coll, Colonsay and Tiree. The Contract is for a four-year period commencing on 16 September 2027 and ending on 15 September 2031. The Services are intended to provide safe, reliable, resilient and financially sustainable air connectivity for island communities, supporting access to education, healthcare, essential services, employment, tourism and economic development. The successful Operator shall be responsible for the operation, management and delivery of the scheduled air services, including aircraft, crew, maintenance, booking and ticketing arrangements, customer service, marketing, performance reporting and associated operational activities in accordance with the Contract requirements.[E6]

Eligibility and requirements

ConditionDelivery location: UKM63.[E7]
ConditionThe legal basis is CELEX 32014L0024.[E8]
ConditionThe procurement is covered by the WTO Government Procurement Agreement.[E9]
DetailLot 1 runs from 16 Sep 2027 to 15 Sep 2031.[E3]
DetailThe notice explains how to submit a tender.[E14]
The notice data states no restriction on who may bid. Exclusion grounds and selection criteria in the tender documents still apply.

Risks and unknowns

UnknownWe read the published notice, not the full tender documents.

Updates

First seen · 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC
The source published a call for competition with a future deadline.
Source document 100260-2026

Evidence

16 facts

Every fact on this page comes from the published notice. Each entry shows the document and the field it was read from.

E1
The buyer is Argyll and Bute Council.
Document 100260-2026, field /buyer/name, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E2
The notice is classified under CPV 60400000 (Air transport services).
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/items/0/additionalClassifications/0/id, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E3
Lot 1 runs from 16 Sep 2027 to 15 Sep 2031.
“2027-09-16T00:00:00+01:00 to 2031-09-15T23:59:59+01:00”
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/lots/0/contractPeriod, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E4
Find a Tender publishes United Kingdom procurement.
Document 100260-2026, field /tender, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E5
Tenders must be submitted by 15 Jan 2027, 12:00 UTC.
“2027-01-15T12:00:00Z”
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/tenderPeriod/endDate, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E6
The buyer describes the requirement in the notice.
“Argyll and Bute Council is seeking to appoint a single operator to deliver Public Service Obligation (PSO) Air Services connecting Oban with the islands of Coll, Colonsay and Tiree. The Contract is for a four-year period commencing on 16 September 2027 and ending on 15 September…”
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/description, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E7
Delivery location: UKM63.
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/items/0/deliveryAddresses/0, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E8
The legal basis is CELEX 32014L0024.
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/legalBasis/id, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E9
The procurement is covered by the WTO Government Procurement Agreement.
“GPA”
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/coveredBy, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E10
This is a call for competition. Suppliers can respond.
“tender”
Document 100260-2026, field /tag, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E11
The procedure is: Open procedure.
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/procurementMethodDetails, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E12
The notice was published on 23 Oct 2026.
“2026-10-23T09:50:40+01:00”
Document 100260-2026, field /date, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E13
Find a Tender gives the tender status as active.
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/status, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E14
The notice explains how to submit a tender.
“http://www.publiccontractsscotland.gov.uk”
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/submissionMethodDetails, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E15
The notice is titled "Provision for Public Service Obligation Air Services".
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/title, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)
E16
The stated value is GBP 1,977,796.
“1977796 GBP”
Document 100260-2026, field /tender/value/amount, read 28 Oct 2026, 09:20 UTC · source (opens in a new tab)

Contains public sector information from Find a Tender, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data licence: Open Government Licence v3.0 (opens in a new tab). Personal contact details in notices are not stored or shown.

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Your fit

Original notice