Dundee could be in line for a major economic boost with the introduction of the city’s first scheduled continental air link.

Operator Flybe is hoping to introduce a daily return flight to Schiphol, the major international hub which serves Amsterdam and which offers global onwardsconnectivity.

The airline which currently operates Dundee Airport’s only scheduled service to London Stansted has made an application for cash support for the route from the Regional Air Connectivity Fund.

It is hoped the route would open up new opportunities for business and leisure travel to and from Dundee Airport, which has been struggling to cope with a significant decline in passenger numbers in recent years.

The proposed new Dundee link is one of 19 routes to be assessed by the Department for Transport for support through the Regional Air Connectivity Fund.

Last year, the fund helped secure Dundee’s only current scheduled flight the six-days-a-week service to London Stansted after the UK Government and Dundee City Council agreed a £2.85 million public service obligation to maintain the route.

The proposed new Amsterdam link has been welcomed by local business leaders.

Alison Henderson, chief executive of Dundee and Angus Chamber of Commerce, said it would be great for Dundee to have closer links to major international transport hubs.

“It would be a good thing to see extra routes from Dundee Airport, especially into somewhere like Amsterdam, which people use for trips and which is a hub for leisure tourism,” she said.

Dundee Airport manager Derrick Lang said Highlands and Islands Airports Limited (HIAL), which operates the airport, were backing the funding bid.

“We support Flybe’s ambition to establish a link from Dundee to Amsterdam, one of Europe’s most important hubs and an increasingly popular alternative to congested Heathrow,” Mr Lang said.

“Schiphol offers connections to a vast network of worldwide destinations.

“Securing access to this global hub would be an important coup for Dundee and we believe that passengers would support such a route.”

Flybe will find out in early May wether its application for funding has been progressed to the next stage of the process, with a final decision expected in July.

Aviation Minister Robert Goodwill said: “The range and ambition of the bids shows how smaller airports can transform their local areas with new connections and trade links.”

Danny Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, said: “I’m delighted that so many regions across the country are set to benefit from improved connections, boosting trade and tourism.”