EDITORIAL: Funding for smaller airports in Ireland will help bolster regional development
Airports outside of Dublin deserve more funding than they are given.
More needs to be done for our rural airports outside of Dublin, writes Aoife Sheehan.
‘We cannot talk about regional development while funnelling most of our aviation traffic through one airport," said Deputy Michael Murphy recently.
Fine Gael TD for Tipperary South Michael Murphy recently raised his concerns regarding regional airports outside of Dublin and their viability.
“An over-concentration of flights being routed through Dublin Airport gives major cause for concern for the viability of Ireland’s regional airports,” said Murphy. It is not fair for businesses and people living in areas outside of Dublin, but close to an airport like Waterford, Knock or Kerry, to often have no option but to travel and fly from Dublin Airport instead of ones closer to home. Greater investment into these smaller airports would create jobs in these localities and also increase tourism greatly.
In the case of Knock and Kerry, these airports are still running flights daily and while a greater number of routes would be welcomed by locals, at least they are open and running.
Waterford airport is one of the more recent to cease commercial operations when it’s last route was closed in 2016. What needs to be done to help Waterford attract commercial airlines and add routes to the airport again?
Experts say that the existing runway is too short and narrow for many of the larger commercial jets that operate now. A 2km long and 45m wide runway is needed to handle larger aircraft carrying up to 150 passengers.
This is an issue for the airport as the current runway is only 1,400m long and only 30m wide. The cost of the works needed to bring the airport up to standard, including this extension, is estimated at €27 million.
Should the government help fund this extension, it would be a useful amenity to locals in Waterford and its surrounding areas. After all, Waterford is an important airport as Ryanair launched the company’s first international scheduled service from Waterford to London Gatwick in 1985.