Tom Dalrymple, the company's chairman, is pushing for rapid international expansion after cancelling flights between Glasgow and London Stansted from the end of February, and between Edinburgh and Stansted from the end of March. He has cancelled a service planned between Edinburgh and Bournemouth this year due to poor advance ticket sales.

Despite the setback, he will talk to advisers next month about raising the cash to buy 10 wide-bodied aircraft to fly from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Stansted airports to Canada, the US and further afield.

Flyglobespan, a fast-growing offshoot of the Globespan travel agency, flies to 23 European airports and will introduce its first transatlantic flight - from Glasgow to Orlando - in June.

Dalrymple's financing plan would mark a significant step up for the Edinburgh-based carrier, which was launched in 2002. He said the company would look at all funding options, including venture capital finance, banks and flotation.

Dalrymple, who owns all of Globespan's shares and has never taken external equity finance, added: "It is difficult to put a timing on such a big issue, but it is likely that I will have to consider this path sooner rather than later."

At least half of the aircraft would fly from Edinburgh and Glasgow, linking Scotland with destinations such as Las Vegas, Boston and Los Angeles.

Flyglobespan will compete directly with the likes of Zoom, owned by former Direct Holidays boss John Boyle and his brother Hugh, by flying to Canada. Globespan currently sells tickets to Canada for services provided by Air Transat.

In the longer term, Dalrymple said the Caribbean, South Africa and Australia would be natural destinations for flights from Scotland.

He ruled out competing for Middle Eastern traffic because he said the Glasgow to Dubai route was already well served by airline Emirates.

Dalrymple said he wants to buy aircraft rather than lease them, as this would mean Flyglobespan could avoid paying premium prices to leasing companies. He is also an enthusiast for newer aircraft, which are more fuel-efficient but also more expensive.

Long-haul flights are likely to follow a similar model to Flyglobespan's Orlando service, with three levels of service: no-frills economy, premium economy with meals and drinks, and business class with fine wines and gourmet meals.

Last week Globespan Group unveiled a 70% increase in turnover to £163m in the year to October 2005, driven almost entirely by the growth of its airline. Despite rising fuel prices and tough competition from easyJet and Ryanair, the airline division contributed £3.1m to Globespan's £6.2m pre-tax profits.

A spokesman said aircraft which had been allocated to the failed routes between Edinburgh, Glasgow, Stansted and Bournemouth would be transferred to more lucrative services to continental Europe.

He said: "Flyglobespan has done this before when something has not worked. All airlines do - they take a look and then say, 'Let's get out of here'. This in no way alters the company's other plans."