The Chair of the Clare Tourism Advisory Forum insists Irish airlines will not fully recover from COVID-19 until they’re directly provided with financial aid from the Government.
It comes as Shannon Airport is to see a reduction in its traffic for the rest of the month from today, with Ryanair reducing its services by a third.
Ryanair is dropping services across Europe by 33 per cent from this month, due to the ongoing Omicron variant and government restrictions across the continent.
Shannon routes to Edinburgh, Birmingham, Luton, London Gatwick and London Stansted have been impacted by the temporary move.
It’s led to fresh calls here for Shannon to be permanently included in the Regional Airports Programme.
Shannon received 10 million euro under the scheme just before Christmas, but the Government has yet to commit to the Midwest facility being included in such supports beyond the end of this year.
Clarecastle-based Fine Gael Deputy Joe Carey believes Shannon will need increased State support in the coming years.
Clare’s Tourism Advisory Forum Chair believes funding will also need to be directed towards airlines themselves to ensure a full recovery of the aviation sector from the pandemic.
The German government provided €9 billion in state aid to Lufthansa at the beginning of the pandemic, with other countries in the EU providing various forms of assistance to its airlines in the past year.
Ennis hotelier Sean Lally says similar moves will be needed here to ensure Shannon and other airports nationwide can prosper.
The CEO of Shannon Chamber believes an overwhelming demand to travel will exist in the Midwest once the Omicron wave passes.
Helen Downes feels both business and leisure travel will prosper as we move into the spring and summer months.
