Barra aims to retain title as world's best runway RUNWAYS on mountain slopes and tropical islands are among the top airport approaches in the world. But the famous beach landing strip on Barra, which is only accessible at low tide, is bidding to retain the title as Number One. Private air charter Private Fly has compiled a list of more than 30 unusual airport approaches. Barra, which won the title in 2012, has been shortlisted alongside airports such as Amsterdam Schiphol, Bermuda, Hong Kong, Cape Town and Rio de Janeiro. The airports were selected by a panel of high profile travel industry experts. Michael Galbraith, station manager for Barra Airport, said: "The beach landing at Barra is the undoubtedly one of the most unusual and scenic in the world. "It is one of those "bucket list" experiences that attracts people from around the world to Barra, and the look of joy as people arrive on the island is hugely rewarding. We are immensely proud to have been shortlisted for this prestigious award for the second year running. Barra Airport opened in 1936 and is a short runway airport situated in the bay of Traigh Mhor - Gaelic for "big beach" - at the northern edge of the island of Barra. The airport is served by Twin Otter aircraft and flight schedules are subject to tidal conditions - at high tide, the runway is under water. The airport provides scheduled flights to Benbecula and Glasgow, operated by Scottish airline Loganair. It handles around 1200 flights and 10,500 passengers a year. The eventual winner will be chosen by the public and people can vote online. The poll closes at the end of the month.