RYANAIR HAS said its plan to establish a new aircraft maintenance operation at Dublin airport, creating 300 jobs, was always on the basis of securing Hangar 6 or nothing.
Following his meeting with Tánaiste Mary Coughlan, Mr O’Leary described the encounter as just “waffle about exploring other options”.
He said Ryanair did not have time to look at other options.
Mr O’Leary said there was no space to develop a new facility on the side of the airport where its aircraft were based. “You would have to go to their other side of the runways and then you can’t get the aircraft or the engineers across the runways which is the big problem at Dublin airport.”
Mr O’Leary also said he had told the Government that Ryanair was not looking for a financial package to secure the aircraft maintenance jobs at the airport. “We do not need your money, we have more than enough money; we just want the hangar.”
However, Tánaiste Mary Coughlan said that while Mr O’Leary had signalled there were logistical problems with other sites for a new maintenance facility at the airports, she had indicated that she would go back to the Dublin airport Authority (DAA) and try to address those problems.
Mr O’Leary and Ms Coughlan spent about 45 minutes in talks last night aimed at breaking the deadlock over access to the hanger which Ryanair said was essential to its plans for the new maintenance facility. “I have done my best to offer the jobs to this Government. I came here this evening, the position has not changed, she is clearly trying to find some other escape,” Mr O’Leary said.
“It is another example of Aer Lingus the Dublin Airport Authority, the Department of Transport and this Government trying to find ways of blocking Ryanair and if that means they lose 300 jobs I do not think frankly that they care”, he said.
However Ms Coughlan said that there were legal impediments to any move to force Aer Lingus to vacate the lease it currently has on Hangar 6.
She also signalled that if Aer Lingus, as the tenant, was forced to move the taxpayer could have to provide the airline with a new premises or pay compensation.
Separately yesterday, it was learned that Ryanair’s original bid to take over a hangar at Dublin airport and create up to 500 jobs ran into trouble because the airline’s rival, Aer Lingus, has a legal claim over the building.
Shortly after SR Technics (SRT) pulled out of Dublin airport last year with the loss of 1,100 jobs, Ryanair began talks with IDA Ireland about creating up to 500 maintenance jobs at the airport.
The airline insisted on using a specific facility, Hangar 6. But it emerged that Aer Lingus had a licence, a legal right, to use the hangar. It is understood that this stems from the fact that the airline originally built it for its maintenance business, Team Aer Lingus, which SRT subsequently acquired.
The DAA bought the hangar last year and leased it back to Aer Lingus for a commercial rent. The authority confirmed that Aer Lingus has an existing legal interest in the hangar.
“Aer Lingus currently has a 20-year licence agreement with the DAA for Hangar 6,” the DAA said.
Taoiseach Brian Cowen also told the Dáil that the original talks involving Ryanair and the IDA ran into difficulty because of the licence held by Aer Lingus.
Prior to her meeting with Mr O’Leary last night, the Tánaiste had held talks with the chief executive of the DAA, Declan Collier, and the chief executive of Aer Lingus, Christoph Mueller.