Mixed reaction to direct charges plan

A PROPOSAL to charge passengers at Shannon airport directly for using its terminal facilities met with a mixed reaction yesterday.

Ryanair said the plan was “doomed to failure”. Its spokesman, Stephen McNamara, added: “The Government and the DAA [Dublin Airport Authority] must stop inventing ways to impose unavoidable passenger charges, abolish such fees and axe the [€10] tourist [air travel] tax to grow tourism and passenger numbers.”

The proposal has been drafted by the DAA, which has responsibility for Shannon airport. If approved, it would remove the airport passenger charge from airline ticket prices and result in passengers paying a fee directly to the airport manager in the terminal building before boarding.

Such a move could incentivise airlines to launch new routes while also boosting the airport’s turnover.

Chambers Ireland said the proposal would “reap real benefits” for Shannon airport.

“Such models are already in place in other airports internationally. For example, Canadian airports charge all departing passengers a $15 airport development levy,” said Tadhg Kearney, a council member with Chambers Ireland, who served on the board of the Shannon Airport Authority for six years up to 2009.

Mr Kearney said a charge of €5-€10 should be “more than sufficient” to raise the required replacement revenues for Shannon, which has seen its passenger numbers decline by about one-quarter since 2007.

“If passengers in the Shannon airport catchment area believed this would bring additional airlines to Shannon and replace some of the routes lost to date, I believe they would be willing to pay the new charge as long as it was both transparent and fair,” Mr Kearney added

Pat Breen, a Fine Gael TD in Clare and the party’s spokesman on foreign affairs, said clarification was required on how the revenues would be spent.

“I’d hope the money would stay at Shannon airport and would go towards the future development of Shannon itself,” he said. “My big worry is that it might go into funding [the construction of] Terminal 2 at Dublin airport.”

The DAA declined to comment on the proposal, as did the Department of Transport.

A source said no decision has been made and it is one of a number of proposals under consideration to boost revenues and passenger traffic at Shannon airport.