Hildegarde Naughton (Galway West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I do not doubt the importance of Shannon Airport for the mid-west region. I do not need to tell Senator Dooley that this will continue to be a focus of the Government to ensure it is supported. The Minister for Transport, Deputy Eamon Ryan, and I had a very good meeting with the new chair of the Shannon Group, Mr. Pádraig Ó Céidigh last Friday. We discussed the current status of the airport, the key challenges, risks and opportunities for the future, including his ambition for building back passenger numbers at the airport, as the Shannon Group continues to successfully position itself for recovery.

I welcome the commitment to the resumption of transatlantic flights with Aer Lingus and United Airlines both offering services from March next year. The availability of transatlantic flights is critical to the mid-west region to ensure balanced regional development. We are all cognisant of the fact that these services provide support and access for the US multinationals based within Shannon Airport's catchment area. They are also critical to supporting tourism and industry in the region.

I have also been informed that next year's Aer Lingus Heathrow service will increase to twice daily from 18 February and then three times daily from 27 March and that Ryanair is planning to operate 20 routes, including the first service from Shannon to Malta. These are positive developments and recovery is being seen. The Government will continue to support Shannon Airport into 2022.