Latest news with #NiallMacCarthy
Irish Examiner
15-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Cork Airport in direct competition with Shannon as new passengers on radar
Attracting passenger traffic from outside the county is crucial to the future of Cork Airport to reach ambitious plans to reach 5m passengers, with Ireland's southern air gateway now in direct competition with Shannon for business, managing director Niall MacCarthy said. The airport attracted 3.1m passengers in 2024 and is predicting growth to 3.4m passengers this year, with plans to grow to 5m. Cork Airport is now pushing beyond its traditional customer base, Mr MacCarthy said, with high volumes coming from Kerry, Waterford, and south Tipperary crucial revenue streams. 'Cork could not support an airport on its own. If we were just a one-county airport, we'll forever be small,' Mr MacCarthy said. 'We need traffic all the way up to south Kilkenny and Wexford to be able to go to airlines and say there's a viable hinterland here.' Shannon Airport attracted 2.1m passengers in 2024, its highest number of passengers in 15 years and a 7% increase on 2023. Shannon Airport Group invested €8m in the mid-west airport in 2024, and has announced plans for a further €30m investment, including a €3m solar PV farm, a €2.5m building thermal wrap, extended boarding gates, upgraded immigration and baggage hauls and 1,000 new car park spaces. Earlier this month, the €200m Cork Airport Development Plan was unveiled, with a new terminal mezzanine floor; new security screening, boarding gates, executive lounges; airbridges, duty-free shop, and a 1.7Mw solar farm. The old terminal and control tower buildings will be replaced with a new pier and additional aircraft parking stands. KSG's Cillian Cashman, Liam Noone, and Monique Egan with DAA chie executive Kenny Jacobs, Cork Airport managing director Niall MacCarthy, and deputy managing director Roy O'Driscoll at the official reopening of the Craft restaurant and bar at Cork Airport. Mr MacCarthy said the two regional airports are now vying for the same traffic. 'Cork is now by far the State's second biggest airport, and we're Munster's biggest. Our hinterland overlaps, so there's a lot of competition in the airport business,' said Mr MacCarthy. 'For inbound and outbound, if you live in Kerry, you can fly from Kerry Airport to Spain or to the UK, you can fly from Cork, Shannon, or Dublin. If you were in north Tipperary, you probably five options, with Knock as well. So absolutely, we are in competition with Shannon. Competition is healthy because it keeps everyone on their game. If we didn't offer a friendly service with a clean terminal with short wait times and relatively cheap parking, we'd be out of business." Cork Airport management have made a submission to government to safeguard land for a Luas spur going from the city to the airport. In the meantime, Mr MacCarthy said that for Cork Airport to attract the passengers from the regions, better connectivity is crucial. 'We'd love a Killarney bus service to be stopping off at Cork Airport. We'd love a Kilkenny service stopping off, and a Waterford service,' he said. DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs noted Dublin is connected to every single county in the country while Cork Airport has just three bus routes. 'We need more bus routes, and even the bus that comes from Kinsale is full by the time it's a few stops away. So definitely, we need more bus connectivity while we're waiting for the Luas.' This week, the newly refurbished Craft airside bar and restaurant was officially opened at Cork Airport by Mr Jacobs, Mr MacCarthy, and KSG chief executive, Michael Gleeson, with seating extended and a more extensive menu with a focus on local produce.
Irish Examiner
05-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Cork Airport to make a formal Government submission seeking LUAS connection
Management at Cork Airport will formally make a submission to the Government this week to 'safeguard' land for a connecting light rail transport spur to the city. Cork Airport managing director Niall MacCarthy told the Irish Examiner that the regional hub needs better connectivity as it undergoes a €200m expansion over the next decade. Mr MacCarthy said it is crucial that a Luas connection is added to existing plans for Cork's light railway network. 'We are supporters of the Cork Luas and love the east-west route, but we will be submitting a paper to Government, as part of the consultation, that there should be safeguarding for a spur out to the airport. 'We'll be saying: 'You need to mark out a plot now', such that you'll have a future route to the airport from that east-west Luas. Because nobody will forgive us in 20 years' time if there is no Luas spur to the airport.' Cork Airport is Ireland's fastest-growing airport and will serve 3.4m passengers this year, having grown its passenger base by over 50% in the last decade. The airport is forecast to see passenger numbers growing to 5m in a few years, DAA said. While Mr MacCarthy envisages plans for a Luas to the airport in the future, he said the facility badly needs a better public transport service immediately. 'We believe we're inadequately served by public transport,' he said. 'We're big fans of Bus Éireann, but we would like 24-hour services. Our busiest time in the morning is 6am. Those people are coming to the airport at 4am or 4.30am. 'There's no bus services, so therefore we'd like 24-hour service from Parnell Place up to the airport. I think that would be well used by staff and passengers for late flights and early flights. The Bus Éireann 226 and 225 are great services, but there is scope to give us more services. 'We'd also like better regional connectivity from the regions. We'd love a Killarney service to be stopping off at Cork Airport after it goes into the city. We'd love a Kilkenny service stopping off, and a Waterford service. We'd like those buses after they come to the city to come up to the airport. Because we've no vested interest in cars, we want people as much as possible to use public transport.' Meanwhile, DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs said a Cork-Dublin air route is 'always possible'. The route was last served in 2011, and in the previous decade was served by both Ryanair and Aer Arann. Niall MacCarthy: 'We'd love a Killarney service to be stopping off at Cork Airport after it goes into the city. We'd love a Kilkenny service stopping off, and a Waterford service.' 'It's always possible, you know, nothing's ever gone for good,' said Mr Jacobs. 'What kind of killed it was too much capacity and too big aircraft. An ATR aircraft, a smaller aircraft similar to that serving Cork-Glasgow by Emerald Airlines, could do it. And there is a type of business user in particular who would use it. I can absolutely see it coming back. 'Look, it comes down to the airline that wants to do it. The road to Dublin is good, the train is good. But as the city grows, I could see it coming back as a form of transportation between Cork and Dublin.' Kenny Jacobs, Chief Executive of DAA said a Cork-Dublin air route is 'always possible'. Investment of €200m at the airport was announced at the weekend, with investment in passenger facilities, including a new mezzanine floor in the terminal which will begin after the summer; a new security screening area; a new and larger duty-free shop; enhanced executive lounge facilities; new airbridges; a long-term car park extension; new boarding gates; airside equipment enhancements; and a 1.7Mw solar farm over the existing Holiday Blue car park. The ambitious programme will conclude with the demolition and replacement of the old terminal and control tower, with a new pier and extra aircraft parking stands to significantly increase overall airside capacity.
Irish Examiner
29-04-2025
- Business
- Irish Examiner
Cork Airport to welcome 62,500 passengers this May bank holiday weekend
Cork Airport is set to welcome 62,500 passengers this May bank holiday weekend, with Sunday expected to be the busiest day. The airport confirmed that passenger traffic this bank holiday is expected to be up by 20% compared to the same weekend last year. With the bank holiday expected to be very busy, airport management is advising all passengers "arrive at the airport at least 90 minutes before their flight and most importantly, to prebook their car parking online." May will also see Cork Airport witness the reintroduction of a number of additional summer services. Aer Lingus will resume its twice-weekly service to Dubrovnik, while Ryanair will resume its twice-weekly service to Alghero (Sardinia). TUI will also restart its weekly services to Reus, Lanzarote, and Palma de Mallorca. Three new summer routes will also start in May, with TUI's new service to Corfu starting on May 9. Aer Lingus' new service to Bordeaux will start on May 15, and SunExpress' new service to Izmir will commence on May 31. Niall MacCarthy, managing director at Cork Airport said: 'As the May bank holiday weekend approaches, summer is now in full swing at Cork Airport. It's great to see our airport growing strongly and passengers throughout the south of Ireland choosing to use Ireland's fastest-growing airport." Meanwhile, Taoiseach Micheál Martin will visit Cork Airport this Friday to launch the airport's €200m Capital Development Plan. The new plan, which will deal with the future growth and expansion of Cork Airport, will be the most significant investment by DAA in the airport in over 20 years. Read More Cork Airport link proposed for Luas during public consultation
