A private operator take-over would be focused on profits and not the strategic interest of the region.
PRIVATISING Shannon Airport would be ruinous, not just for the airport, but for the region, according to the Mayor of Clare.
Mayor Pat Hayes said that under no circumstances should a private operator be allowed to step in.
Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar appointed international consultants Booz and Company to carry out a study on future options for Shannon and Cork airports.
But Mayor Hayes said that a private operator take-over would be solely focused on profits and not the strategic interest of the region.
“The reality is that a private operator would opt for a lower number of services if that’s what delivers higher profits – the bottom line is all that would matter.
“My concern is that, based on his comments so far, the Minister is only focused on making the airport profitable”.
Mayor Hayes said that the privatisation of Aer Lingus is an example of the damage that could be caused in this kind of take-over, as the move had resulted in the loss of the Shannon/Heathrow route.
“That was a calculated move by the airline to develop a base in Belfast in the misguided belief it would be more successful than Shannon.
“They abandoned Shannon in pursuit of greater profits and it caused huge damage to us here.
“That’s what we would be exposed to under private ownership, whether through full privatisation or a concession/lease option”.
The Mayor believes that the airport must remain in State ownership and that a solution to its current difficulties lies in marketing of the region by tourism industries.
“The recent ‘New Directions’ report by the Irish Tourist Industry Confederation showed that seven out of every 10 overseas holiday visitors to the West currently arrive via an east-coast airport or port.
“That’s startling and shows to me that tourism agencies are marketing the east coast as the access point for the West and not Shannon, which from a tourism perspective is outlandish and from a Shannon Airport perspective even worse”.
