The summer officially began for the newly independent Shannon Airport over the May bank holiday weekend as the premier gateway to and from the western half of the island launched its schedule for the busy months ahead.
In all, 33 separate destinations will be served this summer from Shannon. Among these are five new services - two in the US (Chicago and Philadelphia ), two in mainland Europe (Alicante and Faro ) and one in the UK (Glasgow ).
Among the 33 destinations are six hub airports (Chicago, Boston, Heathrow, JFK, Philadelphia and Newark ), offering Shannon passengers one-stop connectivity to thousands of airports worldwide.
In addition to the five new services, four existing routes will enjoy additional frequencies.
Key developments this year for Shannon’s summer schedule are as follows:
— Transatlantic services: The transatlantic market is showing the sharpest recovery, with the airport this year offering five US destinations (Boston, Chicago, Newark, JFK New York and Philadelphia ) alone – the first time since 2009 that Shannon has had five US destinations. This increased US network is expected to generate a 22 per cent rise in transatlantic passenger numbers over the summer season
Shannon remains one of only two airports in the country with transatlantic services and the only one on the entire western seaboard. It is also remains the only airport on the western seaboard to have connectivity to hub airports (five ).
— European services: Europe provides the greatest number of destinations from Shannon, with 19 airports served in all, from Turkey down to the Canaries. Scheduled and charter destinations include Croatia (one ), France (seven ), Poland (one ), Switzerland (one ), Portugal (one ), Spain (six, including the Canaries ) and Turkey (two ). Passenger numbers on European services are this year expected to increase by 10% thanks to new services.
— UK services: Eight airports and five cities (Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Liverpool, London and Manchester ) will be served this year from Shannon
Airport Director Mary Considine said that options for passengers seeking to fly out to, or in from, Europe, the UK and the US have already been significantly strengthened at Shannon, just four months into life as an independent airport.
“The advances already made, with new routes to very attractive destinations, as well as greater frequencies on other popular services, are a real boost for the airport and, particularly, for passengers at Shannon.
“Growing the range of services for passengers was one of our key priorities when we set out in January. The more routes we secure, the more people will opt for Shannon because it is such an accessible, convenient and easy-to-use airport.”
For further information on Shannon’s summer schedule, go to www.shannonairport.ie
