The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
SHANNON is set to have its three daily Heathrow services restored from late March.
Aer Lingus launched its 2022 summer schedule today, in which it stated it will be restoring Shannon-Heathrow and also running Shannon-New York and Shannon-Boston services.
Having all three routes is vital to Shannon and to the wider Mid West area, as they offer fantastic connectivity for business and tourism.
While Aer Lingus had been selling Shannon-US seats for some time, the airline had been somewhat coy about the future of the services, saying all transatlantic services were under review.
At the moment Shannon only has one daily Heathrow service, but according to its schedule that will increase to two in the New Year, before going back to three daily in late March.
Shannon Group CEO Mary Considine said she was very pleased with this morning’s news. “Today is a great day for the West of Ireland economy. It is great to get these strategic routes back which support thousands of jobs across the tourism and industry sectors. Shannon to JFK and Boston are key services so to see Aer Lingus recommence these routes next year is hugely positive. These are essential routes not just from an inbound and outbound tourism viewpoint, but they are critical also from a business travel perspective. Over 40% of US FDI companies are located within Shannon Airport’s catchment and these services very much underpin that investment,” she commented.
Ms Considine also welcomed the airline’s continuation of the Heathrow service. “We are delighted to have the Heathrow service back here already and its continuation is very important to Shannon Airport and the wider region. This is an essential strategic route that provides vital hub connectivity for our entire region.”
She added: “It’s still early days in our recovery but we are very encouraged by the response of our airline partners, including Aer Lingus today. This is a very significant statement regarding the importance of the Shannon market on key international routes and a most welcome and timely commitment as we continue our COVID recovery. We have no doubt that these flights will be hugely supported from across the region and we look forward to working closely with Aer Lingus to ensure the success of their services.”
Owen Ryan
Owen Ryan has been a journalist with the Clare Champion since 2007, having previously worked for a number of other regional titles in Limerick, Galway and Cork.
