Transport Committee to discuss future of Shannon Airport

THE future of Shannon Airport will be discussed by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport and Communications who will meet with Rose Hynes, Chair of the Shannon Airport Authority this Wednesday after the airport officially separated from Dublin Airport on January 1 last. Before her appointment as Chair in December, Ms Hynes chaired the task force on aviation business development at Shannon which argued that “an opportunity exists…to create a truly globally significant international aviation services centre, which will be an economic driver for the Midwest region and the country as a whole”.

Chairman of the Committee Tom Hayes TD says: “With Shannon airport now an independent entity, this is a timely opportunity to hear from Rose Hynes on the airport’s strategy into the future. Shannon Airport’s traffic has declined considerably since 2007 and Ms Hynes has made immediate passenger growth a priority for Shannon Airport.”
“With the new Authority to be merged with Shannon Development in July, the Committee will wish to explore the ambitious plans to transform Shannon Airport by creating an international aviation services centre. The task force which Ms Hynes chaired estimated that between 3,000 and 3,500 jobs could be created over the next five years through the development of such a centre.”
Following the engagement with Ms Hynes, the Committee will meet Cliona Cassidy, Chairman designate of the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB), who will brief the Committee on her new role.  The MCIB carries out investigations into marine casualties that take place in Irish waters or involve Irish registered vessels.
Deputy Hayes continues: “Tomorrow’s meeting is a valuable opportunity for our Committee to engage with the Chairman Designate of this body, which through its investigations and recommendations make a significant contribution to marine safety. The meeting will serve to contribute to transparency in appointments to State Boards and a transcript of the discussion will be sent to the Minister for Transport for his consideration in the appointment process.”
The meeting will commence at 9:30 am in Committee Room 1, LH 2000 tomorrow Wednesday 23 January. Committee proceedings can be viewed online via this link: http://bit.ly/24YmPI