Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 278: To ask the Minister for Transport further to Parliamentary Question Nos. 439 and 440 of 6 July 2007, if commitments of 400,000 transatlantic passengers received by himself will be affected by a reduction of Aer Lingus direct US services from Shannon Airport for the winter of 2008 as rumoured in recent days; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30506/07]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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It is understood that Shannon Airport is making every effort to ensure that year-round transatlantic services are maintained. I would be confident that the Airport Authority, with the continued support of business and tourism interests in the region, can respond to the challenges and opportunities presented by Open Skies.

Experience has shown that the liberalisation of aviation markets results in a greater level of competition among airlines, lower fares and the development of a wider range of services. I understand that several studies have projected that the Open Skies agreement will lead to considerable economic benefits for Ireland, for the business sector, for the tourism industry and for the air transport industry itself.

It should also be borne in mind that the new services by Aer Lingus from Washington, San Francisco and Orlando, and the potential for additional services by US carriers, provide the opportunity to substantially grow more North American business to Ireland. Traditional travel patterns and the attractiveness of the tourism product in the West, suggest that over 50% of such incremental business will involve visits to Ireland's Western regions.

On 7 November, Aer Lingus announced that it would for Summer 2008 maintain daily direct flights between Shannon to New York and Shannon to Boston and a daily flight to Chicago via Dublin. This reflects a continuation of the schedule now being operated over the winter 2007/2008 period. In comparison with the 2007 summer schedule the difference in the 2008 schedule is that the Chicago service is operated not on a direct basis but indirectly via Dublin.

The operation of two daily direct services between Shannon and the U.S. entails the provision of well over 400,000 seats to/from Shannon.