This article is from page 1 of the 2012-10-09 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 1 JPG
SHANNON Airport will soon begin a new life as a debt-free, standalone airport, The Clare People can reveal. The Shannon Airport Task Force will present its plan for the future of the airport to Government next month – and that plan will include the removal of € 100 million of historic debt from the books of Shannon Airport.
This development is seen a vital boost to the airport’s prospects of survival and growth when it eventually emerges free of the grip of the Dublin Airport Authority.
County Manager, Tom Coughlan yesterday confirmed the details of a meeting which took place last week between representatives of the council and Rose Hynes of the Shannon Airport Task Force.
The statement outlines a new future for the airport, with plans to grow passenger number to 2.5 million per annum over the next five years. The task force will recommend a new approach which will see a combined focus on passengers and freight services at Shannon.
Speaking last night, Mr Coughlan welcomed the announcement, saying it is what the local authority had been hoping for and was in line with plans set out by the local authority in the Clare County Development Plan.
The news was also welcomed by Councillor Pascal Fitzgerald (Lab).
“This is great news for the airport. This gives Shannon a real fighting chance in the future. If the debt had been maintained at the airport, it would have been difficult to see how they would have managed it, to be honest.
“So this is very good news,” said