Tag Archives: Shannon airport

SHANNON will be supported to help it recover from the impact of the pandemic, Minister of State at the Department of Climate Action and Transport Hildegarde Naughton told the Oireachtas Select Committee on Transport and Communications Networks last week. She told the Committee that of a new €26 million connectivity fund, €6 million will be ringfenced for the smaller regional airports, the greater sum of €20 million will be for the other airports, including Cork, Dublin and Shannon. Questioning the Minister, Clare TD Joe Carey asked, “With regard to the €26 million connectivity fund agreed with Europe, how does the Minister of State intend for this money to be spent? Has a decision been made in that regard? Is it up to different airports to bid for it? Will Shannon Airport get a particular proportion of that €26 million fund?” Replying, Ms Naughton said, “Some €6 million of the €26 million fund is allocated to the regional airports in Knock, …

ALTHOUGH Aer Lingus is in receipt of the Employment Wage Subsidy Scheme, it has announced it will lay off 129 in-flight service and ground operations staff at Shannon, from next Monday until June 7. One cabin crew worker said that the move to solely lay off the Shannon staff, despite excess staff at all its bases, shows a long-standing anti-Shannon attitude at a senior level in Aer Lingus. “We’re just getting targeted all the time, this is the second time we’ve been targeted just since the pandemic. There’s a surplus at every base, every single base and we’re the most senior cabin crew in Aer Lingus, but yet we’re the ones being laid off,” he said. Management have not revealed how much money will be saved by the move, but with the airline receiving State support, it will not be particularly significant. “It’s not any amount of money that’s going to close the company. They targeted one specific group, which …

AER Lingus has confirmed it is to lay off all 129 Inflight Service and Ground Operations staff in Shannon Airport from next Monday, March 8, until June 7. The workers will not receive a wage for the duration of this layoff and Fianna Fáil spokesperson on Aviation Cathal Crowe has labelled the move a real blow for the region. “Aer Lingus’s announcement is majorly disappointing and a real blow for its Shannon workers, who have faced almost a year of stress and anxiety about their jobs,” said Deputy Crowe. A statement from the airline referencing the announcement on Friday of its full year results said it showed Aer Lingus recorded an operating of loss of €361m in 2020. “This represents the largest ever loss in the airline’s history and demonstrates the profound impact of Covid-19.  Increased travel restrictions in Ireland and across our network and the subsequent negative impact on demand for travel required us to review our network schedule and …

JUST after 3pm on Tuesday afternoon it seemed that the six month wait for a new chairperson of Shannon Group was about to end, with the announcement that agri businessman Aaron Forde would be appointed. However less than seven hours later there had been a sensational U turn, after details of tweets written by Mr Forde emerged. On Tuesday evening the Department of Transport released a statement saying that Minister Eamon Ryan would not proceed with the appointment and that in a phone call to Mr Forde, the Minister had indicated to him that his “use of social media was below the standard expected of the chairperson of a State board”. While Mr Forde’s Twitter account has been deleted, some of his tweets are being shared widely. In one, he wrote a reply to a news story about the introduction of public Services Cards and asked “Do the knackers who are collecting multiple SW payments have one?” In another tweet …

THE Shannon Group has stated that it will restore a unilateral 20% pay cut imposed on its workforce once airport passenger numbers reach one million. However, any pay restoration may not be until the second half of 2022 before Shannon Airport will reach the one million target. This follows the Shannon Group telling the Labour Court that it currently estimates that passenger numbers for 2021 for Shannon Airport will be well short of one million and will reach 600,000 due to the Covid-19 pandemic impact. At the court, the Shannon Group revealed that passenger numbers collapsed last year to 360,000 from 1.72m in 2019. Unions representing 160 workers at all grades and including Airport Police and firefighters have rejected the offer by the Shannon Group to restore the 20percent pay-cut once passenger numbers top one million. At the Labour Court, unions were seeking restoration of the 20 percent pay-cut imposed last year and a plan to return the monies deducted since …

AARON Forde has been named as the new chairman of the Board of Shannon Group. The announcement was made today by the Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan . Mr Forde will join the Board for a period of five-years and take up the position following an appearance before the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications Networks. Mr. Forde has a track record at a senior level with international leadership experience gained across Ireland and the UK. He was Chief Executive of Aurivo, a globally focused agri-business with a diverse business portfolio, for 16 years until stepped down at the end of 2019. In 2019, Aurivo recorded turnover of €446m and employed 650 people. Mr. Forde has previous board experience as Chairman of Ornua from 2013-2019, the Sligo Economic Forum, IBEC, Mid-west radio and the External Advisory Board of Institute of Technology, Sligo. He is also a director of a number of private companies and An Bord Iascaigh Mhara. Welcoming …

SHANNON Group has confirmed the safe return to Shannon Airport of a Turkish Airlines cargo flight TK6551, a Boeing747/400 Freighter operated by ACT on behalf of Turkish Airlines. The scheduled cargo flight was routing from Istanbul to Shannon and onward to Chicago. The flight departed Shannon at 1pm today but returned to the airport, landing safely at 2:47pm. Shannon Airport fire service were on standby; however, no emergency was declared, and their assistance was not required. The cargo on board consisted of perishable items and two dogs. The aircraft had dumped some fuel off the west coast, prior to returning to Shannon.

NEARLY six months after Rose Hynes’ time as Chairman of Shannon Group came to an end, she still has not been replaced. When questioned this week about when the position will be filled, the Department of Transport issued a statement saying, “The position of Chairperson of Shannon Group was advertised by the Public Appointments Service and the Minister is currently considering a shortlist of candidates. The Minister hopes to be in a position to appoint a new Chairperson to Shannon Group shortly.” Ms Hynes is so far the only person to have chaired Shannon Group, which came into being after Shannon Airport separated from the Dublin Airport Authority at the start of 2013. In addition to the airport it also has a sizable industrial property portfolio, particularly in the Shannon Free Zone, while it runs a number of major tourist attractions, including Bunratty Castle & Folk Park and King John’s Castle. Speaking about the next appointment, Clare TD Joe Carey …