Tag Archives: Shannon airport

THE crisis at Dublin Airport is due in part to short-term failings, but also flawed aviation policy which saw it cater for approximately seven out of every eight flights into and out of Ireland, according to Clare TD Michael McNamara. “If you put all your eggs into one basket and it breaks then you’ve got a big problem and that’s what the country has done. But the management of human resources at Dublin has also been inadequate, to say the least,” he said. He said that there are policy levers that can be pulled to rebalance aviation, taking pressure off Dublin and giving more traffic to the other airports that need it. “You could set a cap on the number of flights going into Dublin Airport or alternatively you could set maximum percentages. “For airlines, you could say that a maximum of 75% of your flights can be into Dublin, so if you have 100 flights a week you have …

DUBLIN Airport’s dominance of Irish aviation has seen other airports, including Shannon, decline or stagnate for years, but now that Dublin can’t cope, Sinn Féín wants the employees from competitors to save it. On Morning Ireland this Wednesday, its Transport spokesman Darren O’Rourke said employees from other airports should be deployed to Dublin. “In the first instance what I would say to the DAA and to Ministers (Eamon) Ryan and (Hildegarde) Naughton, is that they need to look within the resources of Dublin Airport, they need to look within the resources of the DAA group which includes Cork Airport, they also need to look within the resources of airports around the country,” Deputy O’Rourke told the presenter. “What we need is people who have sufficient experience and expertise to work these systems and every available person who has that skill set should be considered at this point in time. It really is a case of an emergency and an emergency …

IRISH aviation policy needs to change, new Shannon Group chairman Conal Henry told the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport and Communications last week, but acknowledged that it would be difficult to make the changes required and that he didn’t have all the answers to what needs to be done. He warned that if there isn’t an effective policy solution a meeting like the one he was attending will “take place over and over again” with people speaking about imbalance. In general he said that one outlet having 87% of the market is something that would need to be adjusted. “If we were a private business and 87% of the widgets were being made in one factory and 13% in another four we would re-evaluate our strategy.” At the meeting Timmy Dooley claimed that in previous years Shannon Group had not been focused enough on aviation, which he said is by far the most important aspect of its operations. He claimed …

THERE are reasons to be confident about Shannon’s recovery from the downturn caused by Covid-19, but it is not a given and ongoing support will be required, Conal Henry, the incoming chairman of Shannon Group told the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport and Communications this week. A Belfast native now based in Dublin, he said that he does have a good understanding of issues in the Mid West. “It is important to stress that I have spent a significant amount of time in the Mid-West over the years. As well as running enet in Limerick for 12 years, I also served two terms as a director of the Shannon Foynes Port company. So, I think have a good understanding of the challenges associated with the region, and the region’s economic issues as well.” He said that there are reasons for optimism about the future of Shannon Group. “Over the years Shannon Group has contributed significantly to economic activity and growth …

ST Flannan’s students this week jetted off to the States where they will present designs for a space settlement at the International Space Development Conference (ISDC). The Ennis students received the VIP treatment at Shannon Airport, which is sponsoring their flight to Washington DC after the group won the NASA Ames Space Settlement Contest to design an inhabitable settlement in space. As previously reported in The Clare Champion, the “Mag Mell” settlement was designed by fifth year physics students, Naem Haq, Adam Downes, Cian Pyne, Jack O’Connor and Garabhan Monahan. Speaking from Shannon Airport ahead of their flight to Washington, their physics teacher John Conneely said, “This is a wonderful opportunity. We are so proud of our students for winning the grand prize out of 17,000 students from 22 countries.  We are incredibly grateful to Shannon Airport for the support. “It is quite fitting that we are travelling from Shannon to the International Space Development Conference. Our students were thrilled to …

DUBLIN Airport officials have been told they should be careful what they wish for, after unprecedented overcrowding at the facility in recent weeks. At the May Council meeting, a joint motion from Councillors Daly, Crowe, Begley, McMahon, Killeen, O’Gorman and Keating, called on the Department of Transport to divert spare capacity to Shannon Airport. “Dublin has clearly been unable to cater for what it has while Shannon needs more passengers,” the motion outlined.  Councillor Pat Daly outlined that he had recently met a woman from County Offaly at Shannon Airport. “She thought it was brilliant,” he said. “That shows we should be marketing to the Midlands. It’s only and hour and half from Ennis.” Councillor John Crowe said, “We should be saying ‘I told ye so’. Dublin wanted it all for the last 20 years. They got it all and they can’t deal with it.  For a short-haul flight, you have to be there between two and three hours ahead; …

Two US army veterans in their 80s have been fined €5,000 each for interfering with the operation of Shannon Airport as part of an anti-war protest three years ago, report Isabel Hayes and Claire Henry. The jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court acquitted Ken Mayers (85) and Tarak Kauff (80) of criminal damage to an airport perimeter fence and of trespassing at the airport with the intent to commit an offence or interfere with property. The verdicts came on Tuesday afternoon after more than five and a half hours of deliberations. The jury returned a majority verdict of guilty on the charge of interfering with the operation, safety or management of an airport by entering the runway area and causing the airport to close. The majority verdict was 10 to two, the court heard. At a sentence hearing on Wednesday Tony McGillicuddy SC, prosecuting, told the court that the penalty is a fine not exceeding €250,000, two years in prison or …

THE convenience of travelling from Shannon Airport was a common theme with holiday makers boarding the inaugural service to Barcelona this morning. There was a holiday buzz in the departures lounge of the airport this morning as passengers boarded the 8.40am service to the new destination with Ryanair. This is the second service by Ryanair to the Catalonia region from Shannon Airport. Commenting on the route, passenger Jim Lynch from Clarecastle, said he is delighted with the new service. “I am lucky enough to have a house just over the border in France. I will arrive now in Girona, and I will be able to pick up my car and will hopefully be in my house in about 45 minutes. “That basically means leaving Shannon Airport at 8.40am and being in my house in the South of France at about 12.30pm Irish time, which is just incredible. I hope people use this flight. “Just to go to Barcelona for the …