In response to media queries and a number of recent reports, Cork Airport Authority has taken issue with claims that the airport has suffered a downturn in activity.  Cork Airport welcomed its three millionth passenger on December 31st, 2006, the first time in the 45 year history of the airport that the three million barrier was broken.  The figure of three million passengers represents a significant 11% increase in 2006 over the previous historic high of 2.7 million passengers in 2005. 

In 2006, Cork Airport successfully launched 15 new routes to Angers (Aer Arann), Cardiff (Aer Arann), Galway (Aer Arann), Jersey (Aer Arann), Leeds Bradford (Aer Arann), Nantes (Aer Arann), Newquay (Aer Arann), Birmingham (Aer Lingus), Lanzarote (Aer Lingus), Madrid (Aer Lingus), Prague (Aer Lingus), Krakow (Centralwings), Wroclaw (Centralwings), Gdansk (Wizz Air) and Katowice (Wizz Air).

Both Centralwings and Wizz Air commenced operations from Cork Airport to Poland during 2006, while existing Aer Lingus summer flights from Cork to Berlin, Birmingham, Faro and Tenerife now operate year round.  Aer Lingus also based a fourth A320 aircraft at Cork Airport in 2006, increasing its capacity by 33%.

Frequency and capacity on the Cork-Dublin route was increased to 11 flights daily Monday to Friday inclusive, while two new routes to Manchester (Aer Lingus) and Warsaw (Centralwings) are due to open in March 2007.

In January 2007 Ryanair will revert to a daily service to and from Liverpool with additional frequency bringing to 40 the number of destinations served by scheduled flights into and out of Cork Airport.  Additionally Aer Lingus flights from Cork to Birmingham, Faro and London Heathrow will have increased frequency this summer.

In relation to comments on possible alternative uses for the old terminal at Cork Airport, Cork Airport Authority points out that the new passenger terminal at Cork Airport was built to deliver a modern, comfortable and efficient facility for the people of Cork and the wider Munster region and for all the airlines and other business users of the airport.

The new terminal, which has been warmly welcomed by the great majority of Cork Airport’s customers, represents the key element of the recent overall development of the airport that also includes new internal roads, new utility services, a new fire station and car parking facilities.

These enhanced facilities at Cork Airport represent a very significant investment for the people of Cork and Munster. This investment can only be remunerated by the maximum utilisation of the new terminal by all the airport’s airline and passenger customers.  

In this context, any proposal to continue using the former airport terminal for aviation traffic makes no commercial or operational sense and would significantly undermine the potential of the new terminal facility to operate to its full potential.

As with all other airports, Cork Airport cannot offer preferential rates on existing routes.  However, Cork Airport does offer a generous incentive scheme to airlines planning to launch new routes to any EU destination. The current scheme involves a five-year sliding scale of discounted charges. No airport charge at all is levied in the first year of operation.

The management of Cork Airport believe there is strong potential for further route development from Cork to a range of European destinations and would encourage airline customers to respond to the incentive scheme on offer, in the best interests of all Cork Airport’s customers. 

-ENDS-

Kevin Cullinane
Marketing Manager
CORK AIRPORT
AERFORT CHORCAI
Ireland
Telephone: +353 21 4329611
www.corkairport.com