New Irish airline plans launch next year

A new Irish airline will begin flights to Russia from Shannon airport next year.

Skynet Airline will start services to Moscow in the spring in a deal with Russian airline Aeroflot.

The initiative could open up the west of Ireland to thousands of new visitors.

The company, which is being bankrolled by Irish and American investors, will offer a business and economy class service on its Boeing 737-400 jets.

Skynet said that the service would feed into the Moscow Aeroflot hub, which has an extensive international network.

The major investor in the company is understood to be US financier Carl H Pforzheimer, while other backers include Irish and American businessmen.

Among the first people likely to take advantage of the new service could be Irish soccer fans heading for the World Cup in Japan next June, flying via Moscow.