This article is from page 14 of the 2008-03-25 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 14 JPG
THE Mid West Regional Authority and Aer Lingus have agreed a joint approach to consolidating and ex- panding the flagship carrier’s trans- atlantic services at Shannon Airport.
During a meeting held in New York last week, both parties put forward a set of proposals for boosting regional support for existing services and de- veloping new business.
Representing Aer Lingus at the meeting in Ireland House, Park Av- enue, were Jack Foley, Executive Vice President in North America; Kate Kiernan, Director of Revenues
& Business Development; and Helen Maguire, Director Consumer Sales.
Councillor Lily Wallace (Chair- person) and Liam Conneally (Direc- tor) represented the Nenagh-based MWRA. Representatives of Clare County Council and Shannon Town Council, including both Mayors, were also present.
Councillor Wallace expressed de- light that Aer Lingus had pledged its commitment to developing trans- atlantic services at Shannon. She acknowledged that this was based on the mid-west’s relevant agencies pulling together to market the region as a desirable tourist destination.
“Aer Lingus indicated that it would be very interested in working with any parties that could assist in 1m- proving load factors on all routes,” she said. “The airline pointed out that it was not involved with destina- tion marketing but would be willing to work with the mid-west region if suitable packages and promotional material could be provided.”
According to Mr Conneally, “Aer Lingus is committed to providing competitive packages for air travel- lers as a result of the region working together to market its attractiveness, as well as developing competitive packages that complement Aer Lin-
gus fares. Such an understanding presents a win-win situation for eve- ryone. ”
Alec Fleming, member of the Re- gional Tourism Board and Desig- nated Manager MWRA, stated, “Aer Lingus were very open and expressed a willingness to open their books. I am especially delighted that they in- dicated they would travel to the mid- west to further discuss how transat- lantic services could be maintained, improved and expanded.
“The mid-west has been presented a tremendous opportunity to work with Aer Lingus, which has expressed its willingness to engage in cooperative
marketing initiatives. I would urge all relevant agencies, and the busi- ness and tourism sectors, to continue to enhance the attractiveness of the region.”
The MWRA, one of Ireland’s eight statutory regions, comprises the ad- ministrative areas of Clare, North Tipperary and Limerick County Councils and Limerick City Council. The authority has 26 elected repre- sentatives and has responsibility to promote the coordinated delivery of public services in the region. It is also Secretariat to the Government-ap- pointed Shannon Airport Marketing Consultative Committee (SAMCC).