Call for break-up of airport authorities

MEP Seán Kelly has called for an immediate termination of the link between Shannon, Cork and Dublin airport authorities.

Claiming there was mismanagement and lack of prioritisation of airports on the western seaboard, he demanded action to give Shannon and Cork the opportunity to “tailor their business models to their own needs”.

Mr Kelly said: “There has been a huge loss of connectivity from Shannon due to the intransigence of the Airport Authority in negotiations with Ryanair.

“The collateral damage of this is lost jobs and economic opportunity for the mid-west.

“Cork faces uncertainty over its debt burden due to a previous agreement with DAA. What we need is a radical rethink of our policy towards developing our airports as strategic economic assets.

“There has been too much of a focus on the travails of DAA and the Hangar 6 fiasco with Ryanair... We need to focus on the problems facing our regional airports without delay.”