Tag Archives: Dublin Airport

WHOEVER was left in charge of the Dublin Airport Twitter account last week may have done Shannon an entirely unintended favour. Many thousands of people in Clare and indeed Limerick feel strongly about the success of the airport upon which the region’s economy depends and when Dublin Airport posted a ridiculous, self-regarding tweet about being the key gateway for the 2026 Ryder Cup in Adare, it really jarred. It has helped bring attention to the plight of our struggling airport and the fallout will show local politicians that they must take action to arrest its decline. The term fake news is derided because Donald Trump coined it and has aimed it at some of the most reputable media organisations in the world. Yet the depressing reality is that fake news is often widely believed nowadays, with ease of access to publication through social media and weak deterrents meaning that people are merrily spreading lies all around the world, every single …

ANNOYANCE around the Mid- West was very apparent online late last week, following two provocative tweets from Dublin Airport. The first tweet from the capital’s airport said, “We look forward to being the key gateway for overseas visitors attending #RyderCup 2026, which will take place @TheAdareManor in Limerick”. Claiming to be the key gateway was a cheeky comment from an airport 222km away from Adare, compared to just 43km from Shannon and it wasn’t long before people from Clare and Limerick were responding unfavourably to the display of Dublin arrogance. However, Dublin Airport wasn’t in conciliatory mode and quickly doubled down on the earlier tweet, in response to one man asking was Shannon not the key gateway for the event. “We’ll welcome more overseas visitors for the event, as we’re a much larger airport with much greater connectivity to Britain, the US and continental Europe. Overseas visitors using Dublin Airport go to all 32 counties on the island.” After this, …

    EAST Clare councillors have expressed concern over the stranglehold Dublin Airport has on the grown of passenger numbers over the last five years. Passenger numbers at Shannon Airport are expected to be up to around 1.8 million by the end of this year representing over 30% of an increase since the airport became independent, separating from the Dublin group five years ago. Cork Airport has grown by more than 2%, which translates into 50,000 and Knock Airport by 12% in the same period Traffic at Shannon Airport has grown by over 400,000 since 2013, when the airport began managing its own business future after new legislation allowed it function independently of the Dublin Airport Authority. However, Shannon Heritage managing director, Niall O’Callaghan pointed out the “unhealthy dominance” of Dublin Airport comes sharply into focus with confirmation passengers numbers at the city terminal grew by almost ten million in the same period. Given the focus on regional developments and …

MORE public transport options that are connected to Shannon Airport are needed to make it more attractive for passengers, according to the first citizen. Clare County Council chairman, Councillor Michael Begley has cited his recent experience on a flight from Shannon Airport to Birmingham in England to highlight the difference between what transport opportunities are available for passengers in these two locations. Speaking at a recent Killaloe Municipal District meeting, Councillor Begley told his council colleagues he left Shannon Airport for Birmingham the previous Monday evening. “To my surprise the flight was almost full. Within two hours of leaving Shannon, I had used the plane, shuttle bus, light rail, monorail and a train to be in Birmingham City Centre in two hours. “That is what real access means to me. We are nowhere related to that. I am using Birmingham because it was a commuter short flight. “We have to think how we can make Shannon more attractive to the …

The chief executive of the Shannon Group has hit out at the Government’s aviation policy, which is facilitating the dominance of Dublin Airport. Addressing members of Clare County Council at their November meeting, Shannon Group CEO Matthew Thomas said that aviation policy in Ireland is leading towards the country having only a single airport, in Dublin. Mr Thomas provided figures that showed Dublin Airport had increased its market share from 72% in 2005 to 87% this year and was increasing its dominance at an incredibly fast pace. He said that, despite the growing market across the island, Shannon Airport’s share had fallen from 5.4% to 5.1% since it achieved independence from the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA). Nonetheless, the airport had managed to increase passenger numbers by 25%. The Shannon Group was seeking to change the “very immature” Government policy with regards to airports, he said. “The Irish aviation policy was only written a few years ago and this makes it …

Retention of slots for Irish airports must be pre-requisite in any IAG take-over of Aer Lingus, a leading industrial figure in Shannon has warned. Mr Ken Sullivan, an executive director of Element Six, said that the ability to attract further investment into the region will be undermined by any threat to Shannon-Heathrow slots. He said that Government must make retention of slots for Shannon, as well as Cork and Dublin, a prerequisite for its agreement to any deal. “This region is every bit as dependent now on Shannon-Heathrow services as it was back in 2007 when the Shannon slots were moved temporarily to Belfast. The business community here united in opposition to that move and this time around the threat is not just to Shannon but also Cork and Dublin,” said Mr Sullivan, who was vice chairman of the Atlantic Connectivity Alliance – the group of business and tourism representatives that came together to seek the restoration of Shannon Heathrow …