Why should 100,000 jobs be at the mercy of a single company?
The importance of connectivity for multinational and other business interests to the west, with the development of the second largest industrial cluster outside Dublin, cannot be understated.
In the last decade, Shannon Chamber of Commerce has made consistent calls on behalf of members on this issue because connectivity is being constantly eroded.
In a lot of cases, smaller airports in the region have better links to Dublin, with morning and evening flights funded in part by Government subsidies provided when Aer Lingus pulled its stand-alone service from Shannon to Dublin a number of years ago.
What links were left to ensure that business travellers could access onward flights?
The Shannon-Heathrow route was considered the one vital link to ensure we could access onward connections to Europe and beyond.
The Heathrow connections cannot be understated. Now this link is under threat, even though it is a profitable route.
Ryanair has provided a huge boost to Shannon and the west, but it is not, and should not be seen as, a substitute for Aer Lingus as the airports it services do not always have onward connections at vital times.
Neither does it have inter-line agreements with other airlines which ease transfers, etc.
Local businesses will now have to travel to Cork and Dublin to access some hub airports. This is not good for business confidence.
The western region has always been innovative in its development — from the start of duty-free shopping to the continued development of University Limerick Medical School. What has driven most of the growth in the region? On what have the IDA, Enterprise Ireland and Shannon Development based their sales pitches to industrialists in order to attract them to locate here?
One of the key factors has been connectivity and access to an international airport. Why is the Government allowing a unique selling point for this region to be undermined for the benefit of one formerly-owned State company?
The State still owns 25.3% of Aer Lingus — why did it retain this share if not to intervene in such a case as we have now? How do we continue to sell this region as a place to do business with access being constantly eroded? What about the national spatial plan and balanced regional development? This issue is undermining business confidence in the region.
The commitment of Aer Lingus management to maintain and develop their Shannon business has been in doubt for years. There is a perception that Aer Lingus has made it difficult to book a transatlantic flight for Shannon from the US for years in a bid to drive all that business via Dublin.
What is Aer Lingus’s long-term strategic plan for these markets? Why did they not review their cost base?
Why did they not engage with airport management to improve profitability on already profitable routes? Obviously this is a decision made some time ago.
Does this not indicate a lack of due care towards its customer base in this region? People who supported the airline through the good and bad times feel extremely badly treated.
Element Six and Nortel, two companies that normally go quietly about their day-to-day business, do not go public on an issue like this unless it directly affects their business model.
Comments by the Government and Aer Lingus to the effect that such companies are exaggerating the effect of this decision on their businesses are most unwelcome. These companies have invested heavily in the western region and their executives have expanded the businesses on the basis of the west having air links and being a good place to do business.
The Government needs to be keenly aware that this issue is a threat to the development of a large number of multinational companies. Why should the future of 100,000 employees on the western seaboard be held to ransom by one company that employs just in excess of 4,000 people?
We need to clarify some key points:
1. What is Aer Lingus’s strategic plan for transatlantic and European business out of all Irish airports? Despite what is being mooted in certain media sources, this is a national issue — not a local one.
2. Why is our Government retaining 25.3% of Aer Lingus and investing large amounts of money in infrastructure if not to have an influence on its future development and policy?
3. Where is the 10-20 year strategic plan formed by the Government whose policy needs to ensure industry and the public have adequate air links in a growing aviation market? As part of that, routes to London Heathrow need to be ringfenced and protected.
This is not a ‘them or us’ situation. We welcome the growth and expansion of Aer Lingus into Belfast. But it does not, or should not, be to the detriment of any other region in the country.
Eoin Hoctor
President
Shannon Chamber of Commerce
Unit B9
Skycourt
Shannon
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