This article is from page 7 of the 2011-06-14 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 7 JPG
SHANNON Airport is on the verge of launching itself as a major hub for corporate traffic, with Shannon Development and the airport’s management working towards creating a Centre of Excellence for Business Aviation at the airport.
With corporate aviation currently on the rise, the airport is seen as a prime area to take advantage because of its US pre-clearance facility and uncongested runways.
According to Grellan Kelly of Shannon Development, corporate aviation could be a major grower in Shannon in the months ahead and create a host of new jobs in Shannon as well as providing spin-offs for tourism and increasing Foreign Direct Investment in the area.
“In recent months there has been a real increase in the amount of corporate traffic that is in the air. At current levels, it is still 10 per cent behind what it was at its peak. It is recovering and we want to be in there at the point in time that it is recovering so that we can win some of this new traffic through Shannon Airport,” Mr Kelly told The Clare People .
“There is significant volumes of this type of traffic coming through Shannon already. We want to create awareness in the marketplace that Shannon is a transit place for corporate jets but also to win any ancillary business that might come form that. We are trying to being a tourism product out of it – so that we would get the corporate traffic along with an overnight and some sort of tourist activity like golfing or fishing.
“The plan after that would be to get an investment from some of the corporate activity coming through. In these jets will be the decision makers for a lot of major corporations – if we can create an investment opportunity for them we might get an investment that will create some jobs here. We are trying to work up an investment product that would encourage these investors to come here.
“This is all built around the preclearance to America. That is unique and gives us a reason to compete in the market place. It is key to the whole idea.”
While the creation of a centre of excellence may be years off, increased demand could make it a real possibility in Shannon in the near future.
“Our ultimate goal is to create a centre of excellence for business aviation at Shannon Airport, but you have to build on what you have. There are probably 2,500 corporate jet movement through Shannon Airport every year and we want to grow that. If we can grow then after awhile ti will warrant a centre of excellence there for corporate jets,” continued Mr Kelly.
“For the centre of excellence we are probably talking about creating a physical building – but that is long term. We have the facilities there to do what we need to do at the moment but if we can get the critical mass up then we would warrant an investment. This is Shannon Airport and Shannon Development coming together jointly. We see an opportunity for increasing this traffic, there is also a tourism possibility and then there is the possibility of investment in Shannon and the area.”