Delta boost for Shannon

IT’S widely expected that Shannon Airport is about to receive a much-needed boost, as Delta Airlines are to announce that they will maintain their Shannon-New York service this winter.
Last June, they announced they were axing it for the 2009/10 winter season, in reaction to the recession.
However, with hope emerging that mild economic growth could be coming, they are now set to announce that they will run four Shannon-US services a week next winter. This summer season, they will have daily flights, beginning this Saturday.
Delta had been set to make an announcement about the service at a function on Limerick on Tuesday. However, this was cancelled at the 11th hour as Delta personnel had been unable to travel from London, due to the volcanic eruption.
Mayor of Shannon Seán McLoughlin said that the additional Delta services would be good for Shannon.
“I would definitely welcome Delta back. We know that there is business available in Shannon, we just need the airlines to operate out of here. I would ask people to support the service, particularly now that they’re going to be here all year.”
Later this month, Continental is set to increase the number of flights it operates between Shannon and Newark, for the summer season and Councillor McLoughlin said that this was also welcome.
Michael Vaughan, of the Shannon branch of the Irish Hotels Federation said that getting more Shannon/New York flights was very desirable for tourism interests. “That route is simply indispensable for the region. This gives competition to the route and it brings back one of the key airlines to the region.”
He said that American tourists are the highest spenders and that the market there could be about to turn. “There is a report out from the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation and it is saying that the numbers of American escorted tours are rebounding. That’s very good news for Shannon because a lot of tour groups use Shannon. It looks like the United States will be the first market to rebound.”
There is also speculation that there will be a positive announcement made in the near future about increased short-haul services from Shannon. The amount of European services available was cut dramatically earlier this year, as Ryanair announced it was pulling the majority of its flights.
Meanwhile, Aer Lingus, which had intially refused to use the US Customs and Border Protection Pre-Clearance facility at Shannon, is to begin using it this weekend.