More on Aer Lingus pulling Heathrow route..
This story has since been updated. Scroll down for more
Seeing as it’s probably the top news story for the mid west today we are putting this article at the top of the blog, it will be updated during the day…
Aer Lingus has confirmed that it is to base three aircraft at Belfast International airport at Aldergrove serving Heathrow, Rome, Amsterdam and five other locations. The airline HAS confirmed that the Belfast Heathrow service will replace the Shannon to Heathrow service, so that is bad news for the mid west. Further details are to be announced at Stormont this afternoon after management has met workers at Shannon, which is currently ongoing.
The loss of over 300,000 passengers per year on the Shannon Heathrow route will mean a cut of about 10 % of passenger traffic in Shannon.
Courtesy of the Clare people…
Mayor of Clare, Cllr Patricia McCarthy, said job losses could be as high as 200 with the knock-on effects of the decision, while losses to the airport authority in terms of fees alone are being put at €7 million, according to Cllr Martin Conway.
Business sources have revealed that many companies are already considering relocating to Dublin as there will be no service to Heathrow if the airline pulls all four daily flights as expected. Staff, unions and the airport authority waited to hear official confirmation of the decision today with airline boss, Dermot Mannion due to arrive for a 10am briefing.
Interim chief executive of Shannon Chamber of Commerce, Laurie O’Connor, said the ending of Aer Lingus’ Shannon-Heathrow route would be “a big blow for business in the region�.
“We need the support of the Government on this. We are still waiting for a marketing plan for the airport around Open Skies – we’ve heard that €9m in route support promised to the region may not be coming to Shannon. The Minister for Transport has to intervene,â€? O’Connor added.
Fine Gael’s deputy spokesperson on Enterprise and Clare TD, Pat Breen, questioned the transport minister’s response to the Aer Lingus decision “to sign the death warrant for Shannon-Heathrow services�.
“As a shareholder in the company, the minister must make it clear to Aer Lingus that retention of the existing slots to and from Shannon are critical to providing connectivity to this region,� added Deputy Breen.Like many politicians who came out against the Aer Lingus announcement expected later today, Cllr McCarthy said she could not understand why the airline removed the Shannon slots ahead of Dublin or Cork, leaving the west of Ireland’s largest international airport without any connecting flights from Heathrow.
Clare TD Pat Breen (FG) said he believed that the minister for transport and Aer Lingus should reduce one or two slots in other Irish airports.
“The Taoiseach and the Government should urge British PM Gordon Brown and his government to make extra slots available into Belfast as an acknowledgement of the dividend of the peace process in Northern Ireland,� he suggested.
Clare Junior Minister Tony Killeen (FF) said he believed that the decision can still be reversed but, if it cannot, then a new Shannon to Heathrow link must be put in place at times that are convenient to the business community in the west.
“The Shannon to Heathrow service has a very high load factor, which indicates that the Aer Lingus decision may be based on lower yield factors. I await a full explanation from Dermot Mannion (Aer Lingus CEO) on this issue. However, this comes as no comfort to those whose jobs may be at risk.�
Minister Killeen said he was not surprised that business and community leaders in the region were now questioning the credibility of Aer Lingus’ commitment to Shannon Airport and the west of Ireland.
“However, I feel that the flagship carrier’s recent announcement regarding the continuation of transatlantic services at the Clare airport over the winter period is somewhat reassuring,� he said.
Deputy Timmy Dooley (FF) said the “disappointing� announcement is not in keeping with the spirit of the agreement not to sell the Shannon slots.
12.45 hrsAccording to the local press, Dermot Mannion has stated at Shannon this morning that there were nearly 350,000 people who used the route last year and that the route is profitable. There are also reports that Aer Lingus is going to lease two of the four slots at Heathrow currently in use for the Shannon route to other airlines meaning that it will only use two slots a day for the Belfast to Heathrow route. The flights to Heathrow from Shannon are due to finish next January.
There are to be up to 8 new routes from Belfast to other airports. Aer Lingus says it will base three planes at Belfast, which will primarily serve London Heathrow and Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport. Additional short haul routes will be announced. The airline says it is investing €150m in the new base, which gives the company the potential to increases its passenger numbers by up to one million each year. Aer Lingus said more than 100 new jobs will be created directly through the local recruitment of pilots and cabin crew.
13.15 hrs. An action group has been formed by Aer Lingus staff in Shannon according to trade union Impact. Aer Lingus had committed to fly 400,000 people per year from Shannon in 2005, looks like a pretty hollow promise now! Siptu claim that there is a possibility of 45 job losses but that managment would not answer questions at the meeting because they had to catch a flight to Belfast!!
According to the BBC….
Company chief executive Dermot Mannion said NI was becoming an increasingly popular tourist destination. “Belfast International Airport is the ideal location for the new Aer Lingus base, offering 24/7, all-weather operations and long runways capable of accommodating all current and future Aer Lingus development potential,” he added.
Flights to London Heathrow are expected to follow in January, with services to Budapest, Faro, Malaga and Rome starting the following month. Aer Lingus chose Belfast over Birmingham for its new UK hub. Aer Lingus said its investment of £100m sterling had the potential to bring up to 1m new passengers to the airport every year.
15:32 hrs
BreakingNews.ie has revealed that CEO of Aer Lingus was heckled and jeered as he arrived at Shannon to tell staff that the Shannon to Heathrow route would be scrapped.
It also seems that one of the four slots Aer Lingus is pulling from Shannon are not even needed in Belfast, Only three of the slots will be used in Belfast, and the fourth will be used at peak times.
From Reuters
16:20 hrs RTE reports that 45 jobs will be lost at Shannon because of Aer Lingus’ decision to scrap its Shannon-Heathrow route.