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Tag Archives: Heathrow slots

Fears for Heathrow slots after ‘body blow’ to Clare tourism

THERE are renewed concerns about the future of the Shannon to Heathrow slots in the wake of the latest “body blow” to tourism and business following a cutback in some weekly flights in order to meet the London airport’s cap on passenger numbers. Aer Lingus has decided to cull one of its flights to Shannon from Heathrow ein a move, which may continue for a number of weeks. The Shannon Group has been informed by Aer Lingus that selected flights on one of its three daily Aer Lingus services from Shannon to Heathrow have been cancelled due to London Heathrow’s mandated capacity reduction. The group’s advice to passengers is to keep in contact with their airline for flight updates.” The following flights were cut EI387/388 London Heathrow – Shannon – London Heathrow from Tuesday to this Thursday and the EI385 London Heathrow – Shannon on Saturday. There are no cancellations planned for Friday or next Sunday. Lahinch hotelier, Michael Vaughan …

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Minister quizzed as clock winds down on Heathrow guarantee

THE current obligation on Aer Lingus to run a Heathrow-Shannon service, put in place as a condition of the Government’s sale of the State’s shares in the airline back in 2015, is about to run out. While it is understood that the routes had been performing well prior to Covid, the fact that the guarantee is expiring will inevitably induce a certain amount of trepidation given how significant they are. The fact that Shannon Airport has connectivity to Heathrow is deemed hugely important to it and to Clare. Heathrow is one of the world’s busiest airports and a global hub, meaning that passengers who fly there from Shannon can travel onwards to a massive number of destinations. The link is of huge importance to Shannon’s industrial base and to Clare’s tourism industry. Clare TD Cathal Crowe raised the situation with Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe in the Dáil last week, while he also questioned if the State could help Shannon secure …

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Shannon chair: Government must protect connectivity

THE Government needs to make the protection of Shannon’s Heathrow connectivity a priority, airport management have said. Rose Hynes was appointed chairman of Shannon Group under the current Government and she called for Shannon’s links to one of the world’s most significant hub airports to be protected. “Aer Lingus is a valued airline partner at Shannon, operating services to our key markets. Heathrow is the single most important gateway for business to and from key international markets for Ireland. It’s essential that current slots and frequencies are retained and contractually protected for the individual Irish airports, including Shannnon. I expect the long-term protection of each Irish airport’s Heathrow slots will be a key priority for Government in it evaluation of this takeover bid.” She welcomed the Taoiseach’s comments that the Government would look at factors beyond the monetary value of the takeover bid. “Connectivity through the Heathrow slots is, quite simply, vital for industry and business for the country as …

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Minister briefs Cabinet on bid for Aer Lingus

Minister for Transport, Paschal Donohoe has briefed Cabinet colleagues on the approaches that have been made to the board of Aer Lingus by International Airlines Group (IAG) – each of which is in the public domain. Outlining the current situation, he said, “The Government notes the statement by the Board of Aer Lingus this morning that it has indicated to IAG that the financial terms of the latest proposal are at a level which it would be willing to recommend, subject to being satisfied with the manner in which IAG proposes to address the interests of relevant parties. “The process involving a potential sale of Aer Lingus to IAG is in the early stages. It is important to note that IAG has made a proposal to make an offer and that no formal offer has yet been made. “At this point I want to again emphasise that proposals, which involve the potential sale of the State’s Aer Lingus shares, will …

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Element Six warning on Heathrow slots

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 …

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Dooley says ‘rule out’ sale of Heathrow slots

Clare TD and Fianna Fáil spokesperson on Transport, Timmy Dooley is calling on the Transport Minister to rule out any sale of the Government’s stake in Aer Lingus in order to protect Ireland’s strategic national interests. IAG has come forward with a third offer for the carrier, believed to be worth €2.50 a share. Any such sale could see Aer Lingus’ critical Heathrow slots siphoned off, risking future connectivity and jobs at Dublin, Cork and Shannon airports. “IAG’s pursuit of Aer Lingus is becoming more aggressive with every passing week, and I am gravely concerned by the Minister Paschal Donohoe’s silence on the issue. I’m calling on him to categorically rule out any sale of the Government’s 25% stake in Aer Lingus, and by doing so effectively block the IAG takeover. The fallout from any sale of the airline is being dramatically underplayed,” he said. Continuing, Deputy Dooley said,“The threat to the valuable Heathrow slots could see Ireland’s access to international …

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Chambers worry over Heathrow slots

The potential loss of Aer Lingus slots at Heathrow Airport are at odds with Government plans to correct regional imbalance, the presidents of four chambers of commerce in west have warned. “Recent Government concerns articulated by Jobs Minister, Richard Bruton that Ireland will ‘pay a heavy economic social cost in years to come if regional imbalances are not addressed’ will ring hollow should slots at London Heathrow (LHR), currently controlled by Aer Lingus, be lost in any planned sale of the national carrier,” Paddy Darmody (Ennis), Shannon (Kevin Thompstone), Galway (Frank Greene) and Limerick (Cathal Treacy) said in a joint statement. They stress connectivity through Heathrow gives a small open economy like Ireland unrivalled daily air connectivity to the biggest airport in our country’s leading trading partner and global access and connectivity from Irish airports through the full range of carriers operating at Heathrow. “With Heathrow currently at full capacity, the benefits to IAG of acquiring 23 additional slot pairs are …

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