This article is from page 12 of the 2007-12-11 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 12 JPG
has also learned that US Secretary of the Depart- ment of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff, was given a tour of the air- port earlier this month.
“The customs and border protec- tion investment is significant for the continuation of transatlantic serv- ices,’ said Mr Shanahan. “Shannon could be the first airport in Europe to have full US customs and immigra- tion in the airport itself. This means that any airline can fly directly from Shannon to any airport in America, which could make it very attractive for airlines wishing to use low-cost American airports.
‘We are ready to push the button on the pre-clearance situation but there are one or two minor issues to clar- ify. But once they are clarified, then we are ready to begin construction work on this.”
Mr Shanahan also confirmed that a major replacement route will not be in place when the Aer Lingus Shan-
non-Heathrow route finishes next year.
“There will not be a Heathrow serv- ice after January 14. We do and will continue to have flights into London. We are also in talks with a provider about the creation of a route to Lon-
don City Airport.
“Right now, Heathrow is beyond us. But if we can announce connectivity with another major European hub when the Aer Lingus routes pull out, then we will be okay. We have ad- vanced talks with Charles de Gaulle and are talking about other possible hubs also,” continued Mr Shanahan.
“We have been working hard with Aer Lingus to ensure that they main- tain their transatlantic link. We are also looking at introducing a winter season discount scheme to encour- age airlines to maintain their year- round service between Shannon and the US.”
The chairman of the Shannon Air- port Authority also commented that Shannon’s “tatty” image would be tackled once independence from the Dublin Airport Authority had been achieved and a debt-free start-up had been achieved for Shannon.
“There is an infrastructure deficit in Shannon Airport. Once an initial investment has been received, we feel that the airport will be able to self-fund its capital expenditure from then on out,’ he said.
‘We have assumed a debt-free air- port in our business plan which has been given a broad agreement from the Dublin Airport Authority. The time is right for segregation. The time has come for Shannon to be able to make decisions for itself.
‘Under the Shannon Authority, the airport has grown and is now a profit- able airport. It will remain a 100 per cent Government-owned company so terms and conditions for employ- ment will remain.”
The council members supported a motion to support moves from the Shannon Airport Authority to gain full independence from the Dublin Airport Authority.