Airport confident of growth despite Air Wales withdrawal

Galway Airport says it is still confident that it can expand air links to the west, following the sudden decision by Air Wales to pull out of providing a service between Galway and Glasgow, Scotland.

Management at Air Wales, the national Welsh carrier, declined to comment yesterday, but Galway Airport confirmed that the new service would not now go ahead as scheduled on December 8th.

Responding to the development, the managing director of Aer Arann, Mr Pádraig Ó Céidigh, called on Galway airport management to resign. The new five day-week link had only been announced last week, when Mr Roy Thomas, Air Wales chairman, described Galway-Glasgow as "the key route in the continued development" of his airline.

Air Wales currently operates between Dublin, Cork, Cardiff, Swansea and Plymouth. Ms Jennifer Mooney, marketing manager of Aer Arann, said that it had been in negotiations with Galway Airport on providing a new Galway-Prestwick service, and had only become aware of the rival Air Wales deal through the press reports.

Ms Mooney said that Aer Arann was not even aware that the airport had been speaking to another airline about developing a Scottish route. Aer Arann had demonstrated its commitment to the west, with 90 flights in and out of Galway Airport weekly, and new services between Galway and Luton and Manchester, she said.

Ms Mooney confirmed that she was part of an Aer Arann management delegation which was asked to leave the airport at Carnmore yesterday, following Mr Ó Céidigh's call on Galway Airport chief executive, Mr Jarlath Feeney, and marketing manager, Mr Peter O'Mara, to stand down. Mr Ó Céidigh had made his comments in an interview on Galway Bay FM radio yesterday morning .

Ms Mooney and her colleagues had been due to meet Galway Airport officials, but the meeting was cancelled, she said.

However, she said that Aer Arann would still be interested in providing a Galway-Prestwick link, and would consider its position over the next day or two. "Our commitment to Galway will continue,"Ms Mooney said.

Mr Jarlath Feeney, managing director of Galway Airport, said that they airport would welcome Aer Arann's interest in the service.