New flight deal ‘would boost Aer Lingus’
According to a new report from the Chamber of Commerce of Ireland (CCI), if airlines could fly without restrictions between Europe and America there would be opportunities for Aer Lingus to expand its transatlantic business.
Under the current arrangements, the State carrier can only fly to four cities in the US, but if so-called “open skies” were agreed, the airline would have much greater access to US cities.
This would also benefit the Dublin Airport Authority, as more US flights would also be able to land at the airport.
However, the end of the current aviation agreement would see the end of the Shannon stopover, a move which could have a detrimental affect on the Shannon Airport Authority.
“The new regime will present some difficulties for Shannon Airport, unless active and forceful supporting activities are undertaken, as any agreement will involve an unwinding of the current dual gateway status and airlines will no longer be mandatory required to land at Shannon. Cork should also be well positioned to take advantage of the new regime,” said Tadhg Kearney, Chairman of CCI’s Air Transport Users’ Council.
The report found that there may be scope for limited transatlantic services from Cork when the new terminal is built.
However, there were unlikely to be any transatlantic opportunities for Knock or Kerry airport without major infrastructure investment.
It said that for Shannon Airport to maintain flights to the US, it must concentrate on attracting and keeping American carriers and let Aer Lingus focus on Dublin Airport.
Mr Kearney said the benefits of an open skies agreement would not be limited to the aviation sector.
One of the study’s main findings was that the economy would benefit from more tourists and exports.
The report was co-written by the former Fine Gael leader and Finance Minister Alan Dukes and Frederik Sørensen, an aviation expert for the EU Commission.
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