This article is from page 3 of the 2007-08-14 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 3 JPG
AER LINGUS’S decision to end its Shannon-London Heathrow serv- ice will mean added trauma for be- reaved families living 1n the west of Ireland.
That is the view of parish priest of Shannon, Fr Tom Ryan, who yester- day said that the ending of the serv- ice will result in the ending of the repatriation of Irish bodies from Eu- rope and the UK through Shannon.
Three years ago, Aer Lingus an- nounced that it was to end the repa- triation of bodies on its short haul flights to the three Irish state air- ports but quickly rescinded its deci- sion following a public outcry.
Now, arising from the Aer Lingus decision to end its Shannon-Lon- don Heathrow service from Janu- ary next, bereaved families will no longer be able to receive repatriated bodies of loved ones in a service that Aer Lingus has provided at Shannon for decades.
With no other airline providing the service at Shannon airport, families will now be forced to travel to Dub- lin and Cork airports to receive the
bodies.
a LO Er Cee EDOM mee ieee! over the pastoral dimension to the Aer Lingus decision and it under- lines the ripple effect of the decision for everyone in the region.
“The dead don’t have a voice and this decision to end the Heathrow service will only add to the distress of families at a very vulnerable time where they will have to embark on long journeys to retrieve the bod- oad
Fr Ryan said that it 1s a “very fre- quent occurrence” for him to go to the mortuary in Shannon and be in- volved in the repatriation of bodies. He said, “It takes place a couple of times a week, sometimes more.”
Fr Ryan added, “Aer Lingus has been very good over the years of providing the service and I would hope that the decision to end the Heathrow service would be reversed and rather than Shannon losing all its Heathrow lots that the burden would be shared between Shannon, Dublin and Cork.”
Spokesman for the Irish Associa- tion of Funeral Directors ([AFD), Gus Nichols, confirmed last night
that the IAFD will be writing to Aer Lingus chief executive, Dermot Mannion to express concern over the Aer Lingus move.
He said, “The move represents an- other reduction in services and will have an unavoidable impact on be- reaved families.”
Limerick-based funeral director, Gerry Griffin, said that the Aer Lin- gus will add to the costs of families seeking to have bodies repatriated. He added, “The service at Shannon is used greatly as Heathrow was the hub for all over the world for bodies being repatriated.”
He added, “The emotional impact will be huge for families worried about not being able to bring their loved ones home through Shannon and will only add to the trauma. That services are disappearing through so-called progress sounds strange.”