Waterford airport takes off as new routes boost south-west hub
The chairman of South East Regional Airport (Waterford), Nicky Fewer, has said the facility is gearing up for a very busy summer.
There is a particularly high demand expected during school holidays in Ireland, Britain and France.
Aer Arann currently operate 28 flights each week between Waterford and London Luton, six to Manchester and six to Lorient, north-west France.
Over 20,000 passengers have flown on scheduled services to and from Waterford this year, with an increase in capacity since the introduction of Aer Arann’s new timetable on May 9.
Welcoming what he said were “very encouraging” passenger numbers, Mr Fewer said a growing number of people from the south-east now use the Aer Arann services as a bridge to onward flights, particularly from Manchester.
“As well as providing swift access to the north-west of England, the thrice-weekly Manchester service acts as a very effective air bridge ... avoiding the increasingly congested and expensive airports at Dublin and Heathrow.
“In May alone, ten new routes commenced from Manchester that allow passengers using the Aer Arann service from Waterford to connect with affordable direct flights to Ottawa; Halifax; Tallinn; Malta; Paphos; Tenerife; Vancouver; Toronto; Dubrovnik and Pisa. 100 airlines now serve 200 destinations from Manchester, Britain’s largest regional airport.
Mr Fewer also said that there has been excellent interest this year in the Lorient service, introduced for the first time in 2004. “More and more leisure passengers in particular are now aware of and using this service which links the south-east of Ireland with Brittany.
“The route also helps drive inbound tourism to the region from mainland Europe and I know that South East Tourism have been working jointly with Aer Arann in promoting Waterford and the southeast to potential visitors from Brittany.”
Mr Fewer said the airport is on course for further growth during 2005 and beyond.
For details of Waterford-Lorient, Waterford-Manchester and Waterford-London Luton services, see www.aerarann.com or contact your travel agent.
