Results 6,721-6,740 of 10,573 for speaker:Patrick O'Donovan

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: I welcome the representatives of Virgin. I wish to ask some questions on the interline agreements. Is it fair to say there is nothing stopping IAG from entering into an interline agreement with Virgin tomorrow morning, for example? In that case, does this have more to do with the commercial impact on Virgin than any potential impact on the travelling Irish passenger? What is the nature of...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: I did not realise there was a Deputy speaking for Virgin.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: In relation-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: I did not make any allegation.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: An intervention was made.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: I asked a question and it was responded to by a Deputy. I thought that was a little unusual. I am keen to tease out how it is that Virgin representatives have come before the committee today. Has Virgin made a submission to the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport in Ireland? Could Mr. Thompson provide us with some insight into what engagement Virgin has had with the relevant...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: Specifically, in terms of the airlines I mentioned, does Virgin Atlantic have interline agreements with those?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: With which airlines does the company have interline agreements?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: It is important to get the information, because the key premise behind the presence of the witnesses at today's meeting is concern about the interline agreements. That is my understanding of the thrust of what Mr. Thompson said. I asked about Austrian Airlines, Swiss International Air Lines, Lufthansa, KLM and Air France, which are the biggest groupings in Europe. Surely Mr. Thompson can...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: But there is nothing to suggest out of the Austrian experience or the KLM experience that it would not happen.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: That there would not be an effective interline arrangement in the future. Virgin Atlantic has effective interline arrangements with other airlines at the moment operating out of Paris and Amsterdam-----

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: I wish to go back to a question I asked a while ago about Mr. Thompson's engagement with Irish stakeholders and his obvious concern for the Irish citizen. The witness said he felt the consumer was not being adequately protected in the process, and taking up Deputy Kenny's point, I believe that is unfair to this committee and the work it has done, particularly given the number of meetings...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: Is that the total number?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: Does the witness know what percentage of the 100,000 are in the North Atlantic routes?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: Would it be 60%?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: If 100,000 people are transitioning with Virgin and if it has made the decision to come out and advise the people that this is such a bad deal, would the airline not know, before the submission is made, how many are going to each of the destinations? From a brief look on the Internet, I believe there are 3 million direct seats into Ireland from North America, by a whole host of airlines,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: For argument's sake, if it were 60,000 out of 3 million seats on the North Atlantic routes, it is less than 1.5% of the total number of people who travel the North Atlantic to and from Ireland with Virgin Atlantic.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: Is the witness expressing a concern for more than Virgin Atlantic?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: I accept the legitimacy of the witness's concern but from a transatlantic point of view, even at very high water, in the deliberations of the airline, 1.6% of the total traffic into and out of Ireland is handled by Virgin Atlantic on the North Atlantic routes.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications: Proposed Sale of Aer Lingus: (Resumed) Virgin Atlantic Airlines (2 Apr 2015)

Patrick O'Donovan: It is a pity the witness did not bring those figures with him before he came to the Oireachtas with such obvious concerns.