Aer Lingus begin flights out of Knock

AT a quarter past three yesterday afternoon (Monday), the first Aer Lingus flight out of Ireland West Airport Knock (IWAK) in nearly a decade took off from the east Mayo airport en route to Gatwick Airport in London.

The new service to Gatwick – the tenth busiest airport in the world – will provide the west and north west region with easy access to central London and the south east of England, and is expected to generate €12 million to the economy of the west through tourism. Gatwick  Airport is the airline’s new international base and cities available from Gatwick through Aer Lingus include Malaga, Munich, Nice, Vienna and Zurich.

Gatwick also has connections to up to 220 destinations globally and it is expected that the western region will benefit from an increase of around 35,000 tourists and almost 200,000 bed-nights into the regional economy annually.

Mr Liam Scollan, Chairman of IWAK, said the new route was significant because it allowed passengers from around the globe greater access to Knock.

“This new route alone will bring an additional 127,000 seats per annum, connecting our region to the UK, and it underlines the growing economic importance of the airport to the wider region as our flight services are expected to support a substantial tourism spend of €70 million in 2009. 

“The further significance of this new venture is that Aer Lingus now provides passengers from the region, and from around the globe, with the potential to interline to and from Ireland West Airport Knock with its code share partners which include British Airways, KLM Virgin Atlantic and United Airlines. This is a huge boost for all concerned and I encourage the tourism and business organisations and the public to rally behind this latest opportunity for the west,” he said.

The return was also welcomed by Mayo TD Beverly Flynn, who said the new service would be a great asset to the west of Ireland and will be a huge success.

While the resumption of the Gatwick route comes as a welcome boost to the airport, the bmibaby service from Knock to Glasgow International was temporarily suspended on Sunday, March 29, with the airline confirming the cancellation of the route was due to economic reasons.

“This route is being suspended in response to a weakening in consumer demand, which is being impacted upon by the current economic climate and its unpredictability. Bmibaby is a key player in serving the Irish regional market and remains committed to flying from Ireland West Knock Airport,” a spokesperson for bmibaby said.

“The airline will continue to provide frequent flights from the region to Manchester and Birmingham International Airport, and will maintain its investment in marketing these scheduled services to all. Bmibaby will work closely with Ireland West Knock Airport and the key tourism development agencies to evaluate future growth opportunities from the airport. Any affected passengers can transfer free of charge to another bmibaby destination of their choice or alternatively they will receive a full refund.”