The Clare Champion Clare news, sport, entertainment and local notes
THERE has been some bad news for Shannon as American Airlines is opting not to resume a number of routes between the US and Europe next summer, including Philadelphia-Shannon.
A spokesperson for Shannon Group said, “The aviation sector has taken a battering during the Covid-19 pandemic and recovery was always going to take time. Due to a shortage of aircraft as a result of delayed delivery of Boeing 787 aircraft, American Airlines have been forced to reduce a number of routes they operate worldwide. Among these is their Philadelphia to Shannon service. However, Shannon Airport is working with them on restoring this service for 2023. In the meantime Shannon will see the welcome resumption of transatlantic services next year to New York and Boston with Aer Lingus, and to Newark with United.”
The Wall Street Journal today reported that American will not be flying from the US to Hong Kong and Edinburgh next summer, while it is also reducing flights to China and Australia.
Shannon-Philadelphia had been due to resume from next May and the airline had been selling tickets for the route.
In a memo to the airline’s staff which has been widely quoted in the US media, American Airlines executive Vasu Raja said, “Boeing continues to be unable to deliver the 787s we have on order including as many as 13 aircraft that were slated to be in our fleet by this winter.”
He added that without the aircraft the airline had no option but to reduce the level of services it will offer.
The loss of the route will be a disappointment to Clare tourism businesses, as it provided an important link to the high spending US market.
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.
