Plans for the future of Prestwick airport are due to be outlined later today by Scotland’s deputy first minister Nicola Sturgeon.
She is expected to give details of the Scottish government’s long-term vision for the airport when she appears before Holyrood’s infrastructure committee.
The Scottish government bought the airport for £1 last year from owner Infratil amid fears it could be forced to close due to heavy losses.
A business case has been drawn up and millions of pounds have been earmarked for investment.
There are 3,200 jobs directly or indirectly associated with the airport and it is estimated to be worth £60 million to the Scottish economy.
Prestwick’s main runway is one of the longest in the UK, it has its own railway station and is less than an hour from Glasgow.
But falling passenger numbers and a decline in freight operations led its previous owners to put the airport up for sale.
A spokesman for Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce told the BBC: “Prestwick airport is not only an asset to Ayrshire but to Scotland being unique with its own railway station and runway length together with its coastal location making closure unlikely due to adverse weather conditions
“With some imaginative and innovative planning the airport can make a contribution to the Scottish economy building on the centre of excellence for aerospace training at Ayrshire College, the Enterprise Area and the vast engineering experience in this sector on its doorstep.”
But Glasgow and Edinburgh airports have expressed concerns at being forced to compete with a publicly-funded rival.