Warning signs for ‘critically ill’ airport

THE current difficulties of Galway Airport, the future of which is now in serious doubt, show the fate that could befall Shannon unless action is taken soon.

That’s the view of Shannon-based Town and County Councillor Sean McLoughlin who says work needs to be done to get in new services. “Unfortunately Galway is finding it hard to survive. It’s something Shannon has to realise as well, if we don’t get the flights in here we won’t survive.
“Shannon is critically ill and has been for the last three or four years, but there is great opportunity there. They’re all talking about Aer Lingus and Ryanair but there are other airlines out there who I’m sure would be quite willing to come in if they were offered the right package.
“There are airlines looking for destinations and Shannon opens up the whole West of Ireland. If we have people out looking for airlines to come in I think it can be a success.”
He said the number of flights arriving into Shannon daily is dangerously low. “If something isn’t done, Shannon will be down to eight flights a day soon. Can Shannon survive on eight flights a day? We’ve something like 12 or 13 at the moment. I can’t see it being sustained on just eight flights and there’s a lot of jobs in the region depending on it.”
Councillor McLoughlin said efforts at promoting Shannon should focus on the US, not on Ireland.
“There must be some way of enticing planes to come in here. Other airports around Europe, which aren’t nearly as well positioned as Shannon, are enticing airlines in. People are talking about the catchment area, the catchment area of Shannon is New York, Philadelphia, Boston and Chicago. That’s the catchment area and the area that should be targeted not the people in Tipperary, Clare, Galway and Offaly. We need to bring people in, to spend money and get out of the recession.”
In a recent communication to Transport Minister Leo Varadkar, a proposal from the board of Shannon raised the prospect of the airport’s privatisation. However Councillor McLoughlin is totally against this and was critical of the board.
“Privatising Shannon isn’t the way to go. What we do need, and I put a motion to the county council on it, is for an input from the local authority on the board. We have to have representation on the board. In my view, the whole board will have to be looked at because I’m wondering what they’re doing. I’ve heard nothing constructive from the board since it was put in place.”
At the October meeting of Clare County Council, Councillor PJ Ryan put forward a motion, that was passed, seeking a role for the local authority in the airport’s running, should current management structures be changed.
Speaking to The Clare Champion, Councillor Ryan said, “If Shannon is handed over to an outside body or purchased, part of the deal should be that the local authority would have a say in its day to day running.”
Councillor Ryan said the time Shannon has spent under the control of the Dublin Airport Authority shows the importance of having local influence over the airport’s running, as he claimed it hasn’t been promoted properly in recent years.