Mr. Garry Martin:

As stated in the national aviation policy, Ireland is an island nation on the periphery of Europe and we are much more dependent on aviation than other countries within Europe. While Ireland is on the periphery of Europe, Donegal is a peripheral region within Ireland and Donegal Airport is recognised as a key transport and tourism asset for the wider north west region. County Donegal is currently not well served by surface transport networks. There is no rail network, no motorway and very little primary road network. We have included a map in our submission by way of illustration. While improvements have been made to the N56, drive time to the capital still takes on average four hours. This regional imbalance in transport infrastructure is only partially addressed by the provision of a public service obligation route, which provides twice daily flights between Donegal and Dublin Airport, with a flight time of approximately 45 minutes. This service allows the people of the north west to access vital services in the capital, and a large proportion of our passengers travel to avail of medical facilities that are not provided within the north west region. In addition, this route is recognised by the local development authorities such as Údarás na Gaeltachta, IDA Ireland and Enterprise Ireland as a key enabler in attracting companies to locate, establish and expand in the north west region thereby contributing to economic development and job creation in the county. The latest report compiled by Fitzpatrick Associates concluded that the airport contributed €46.6 million in output between direct, indirect and induced investment, with the generation of 393 full time equivalent positions.

While the Donegal-Dublin route and the Aerfort Chonamara - Aran Islands are currently the only two existing public service obligation contracts in Ireland, PSO’s are commonly used both in the UK and throughout Europe. The latest data on public service obligations published in 2019 indicate that there were 176 European PSOs, 22 of which were UK routes. The existing PSO service between Donegal and Dublin complies with relevant EU regulations particularly in respect to serving a peripheral region lacking in alternative transport and accessibility infrastructure. We welcome the continued recognition by the Government of the need to support air access to the region with the PSO which was awarded to Emerald Airlines for the three-year period from February 2022 to 2024 with an option to extend for a further year. We hope the Government will continue to support this vital air access to the region through a further PSO award when the current contract expires.