Maria Byrne (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Mr. Ó Céidigh is very welcome here. It is good to see him. I have many happy memories of our time in the Seanad together. I congratulate him on his imminent appointment and thank him for coming in.

Shannon Airport is very important for the region. Coming from Limerick city, I know it is important to many businesses in the region. I had to speak in the Chamber and I apologise if some of my questions have been asked already. In terms of the Aer Lingus London to Shannon service which will operate for ten weeks while Cork Airport is closed, Mr. Ó Céidigh said he was willing to work with Aer Lingus to expand on that. I would like the airport to be developed as a European hub. When I was a member of a committee in the past I had to travel to Brussels a good deal. There is no connectivity between Shannon Airport and Brussels. The representatives of many companies travel to European cities on business trips and Brussels and Amsterdam would be key cities. I would like connectivity to be developed between Shannon Airport and one of those key cities. Many business people have to travel to Dublin Airport to get flights to those cities. If such connectivity was available on their doorstep in Shannon Airport, they would use it.

Regarding transatlantic routes, I welcome the announcements made by United Airlines and American Airlines. Has Mr. Ó Céidigh any plans to expand those routes or to consider flights to other areas?

To follow up on Senator Conway's thinking on the setting up of an aviation school, there are many aviation leasing companies in the region. Many companies with a link to the airport have based themselves in Shannon. Has Mr. Ó Céidigh any plans to examine other options in terms of companies locating on the grounds of Shannon Airport?

While the number of passengers travelling through the airport have dropped, I was there recently when the Minister of State, Deputy Naughton, visited the airport and it was good to see many cars in the car park compared to a few months previously when there were only about 20 in it. Things are coming back. Shannon Airport has one of the longest tarmac runways in the country. It is the only airport in the country that is open 24-7, 365 days a year. Shannon is very proud of that. Has Mr. Ó Céidigh any options to expand connectivity to other destinations to create a regional balance with Dublin? Dublin Airport is very busy. While the number of people travelling is reduced, can expanded connectivity to other destinations such as Asian countries be explored? To travel to those destinations or to Australia, one has to travel from Dublin Airport? Is Mr. Ó Céidigh considering other options?