This article is from page 4 of the 2007-08-07 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 4 JPG
JOB losses of between 100 and 200 have been predicted at Shannon Air- port as Aer Lingus’s commitment to Shannon and the west of Ireland 1s questioned by the political and busi- ness communities.
Calculating the worrying estimate, should the Shannon-Heathrow con- nection be lost, Mayor of Clare and Shannon Councillor Patricia McCa- rthy (Ind) described the situation as
“devastating” and “unbelievable”.
The mayor is returning from her annual holiday on Saturday to chair a meeting of tourist, commercial and political bodies with an interest in the area.
‘We have to look at what we can do immediately. Our first priority is to see can we get the decision overturned. If not, we must try to secure another air- line that can service the same times, which will be very difficult.”
Like many politicians who came
out against the Aer Lingus announce- ment expected later today, Cllr Mc- Carthy said she could not understand why the airline removed the Shannon Slots ahead of Dublin or Cork, leav- ing the west of Ireland’s largest in- ternational airport without any con- necting flights from Heathrow.
Clare TD Pat Breen (FG) said he be- lieved that the minister for transport and Aer Lingus should reduce one or two slots in other Irish airports.
“The Taoiseach and the Govern-
ment should urge British PM Gordon Brown and his government to make extra slots available into Belfast as an acknowledgement of the dividend of the peace process in Northern Ire- land,” he suggested.
Clare Junior Minister Tony Kil- leen (FF) said he believed that the decision can still be reversed but, if it cannot, then a new Shannon to Heathrow link must be put in place at times that are convenient to the busi- ness community 1n the west.
‘The Shannon to Heathrow service has a very high load factor, which 1n- dicates that the Aer Lingus decision may be based on lower yield factors. I await a full explanation from Der- mot Mannion (Aer Lingus CEQ) on this issue. However, this comes as no comfort to those whose jobs may be 1 wh eae
Minister Killeen said he was not surprised that business and commu- nity leaders in the region were now questioning the credibility of Aer Lingus’ commitment to Shannon Airport and the west of Ireland.
‘However, I feel that the flagship carrier’s recent announcement re- garding the continuation of transat- lantic services at the Clare airport over the winter period is somewhat Ker UUW EELS OORT BLOB
Deputy Timmy Dooley (FF) said the “disappointing” announcement is not in keeping with the spirit of the agreement not to sell the Shannon slots.