Cork Airport flying high - Tourism sector must respond

THE news that Cork Airport is to begin its first ever scheduled transatlantic flights to Boston and New York comes as a major boost to the Munster region.

Management at the airport have long lobbied for transatlantic flights. They were about to happen in 2001 when the tragedy of 9-11 put paid to those plans.

The new routes, to be operated by Norwegian Air International, will begin with a Boston service in May of next year. Direct flights from Cork to New York will follow in 2017 if the Boston route proves to be a success.

Tribute must be paid to the airport’s management in bringing about a turnaround in its fortunes. Although blessed with a state of the art terminal and modern comforts, passenger numbers have fallen by 35% since 2008.

That is all about to change, considering the recent announcement of three new routes — CityJet to London, Flybe to Cardiff, and Aer Lingus to Dusseldorf — as well as the Boston route.

These, together with capacity increases on existing routes, will return Cork Airport to traffic growth this month.

The question now, though, is how will Munster’s tourism and hospitality sector respond to this increase in capacity?

They have been calling for it long enough. Cork Airport has delivered. Now it is up to hoteliers and others in the tourism sector to maximise the benefits that are sure to accrue.