Mr. Michael Cawley:

I am not an expert on airline hubs. The basic reason airlines do not start routes is that they would lose money on those routes. Money can fix that. The commitment involved in giving an expensive slot to a regional airport like Shannon Airport, as Lufthansa might do in the case of Frankfurt Airport, is an opportunity cost for those involved. When they look around Europe, they see the potential of linking in with a Polish city, a Swedish city or another city of 500,000 people and attracting the associated long-haul business traffic which would pay them money. Frankly, that is a big gap for an airport like Shannon Airport to bridge when promises are being made in respect of passengers. I am not sure where the foreign multinationals in Shannon want to fly to. The reality is that not enough of them have shown up to provide a level of demand for flights that would justify these increased services. I am sure the Shannon Group has prepared a proposition for the various airlines to which it talks. I do not know.