Coffey believes airport runway extension is back on track

RobitTV

THE decision of the Oireachtas Transport Committee to conduct an examination of the country’s airports has been welcomed by Senator Paudie Coffey.

The examination is to take place in the wake of a recent export report, which concluded that An Bord Snip was wrong to lump Waterford Airport in with heavily subsidised regional airports along Ireland's west coast when looking at ways to save the State money.

The Fine Gael general election candidate said, “A report compiled in February 2010 by the leading UK transport consultancy firm, Colin Buchanan and Partners, makes a strong case for Waterford Airport as the consultants found that 85% of the 450 regional businesses surveyed regarded direct air access through Waterford as very important.


“The report noted that, despite the recession, passenger numbers have remained ‘fairly resilient’ at Waterford when compared with other regional airports and the consultants estimate that over 500 local jobs depend on the airport.”

He went on to say, “Colm McCarthy criticised all the regional airports for relying on the Department of Transport’s Operating Subvention Scheme, which gives Waterford about €1.5 million a year. However, this overlooks the far larger subsidies that other regional airports receive for Public Service Obligation (PSO) routes so they can fly to Dublin, even when road or rail travel would be almost as fast, which Waterford does not get. It costs the State about €16 for every passenger who flies through Waterford. The equivalent cost at Knock Airport is almost €100 per person. Waterford is the cheapest and best value regional airport in Ireland.”

He said Waterford Airport also serves a large area, with access from Kilkenny and Carlow much improved by the motorway.

The regional airports at Knock, Sligo, Donegal and Derry could all fit into the distance between Waterford and Dublin Airport, he added.

According to Senator Coffey, local businesses told the consultants that Waterford needs direct links to hub airports like Paris and Amsterdam.

He added, “Waterford Airport’s runway extension is firmly back on the agenda. Waterford Airport needs a longer runway if it is to be able to handle larger planes and more international services. Plans to extend the runway are on hold because of the financial crisis. The report by Colin Buchanan and Partners gives us the facts to argue the case for Waterford Airport. I welcome the Oireachtas Transport Committee examination of our country’s airports and look forward to making the case for investment in Waterford.”

mike65

I'm not sure that is back on the agenda in any meaningful fashion but its right that the whole PSO/non PSO issue is being raised again. Waterford is Irelands "International" local airport.

merlante

It's worrying that Waterford is just lumped in with the rest... even when you feel that it shouldn't really have anything taken away from it since it doesn't get a PSO.

In reality, the PSOs are obsolete and should be abolished. They should be replaced by a major investment in rail, to equal what has been put into the roads. Trains should be at least as fast as the journey by road everywhere.

If we were going to maintain any kind of PSO, it should be a PSO subvention for a London airport, not for Dublin. It would arguably be a good use of central funds to secure these London connections if they were anything like as successful as the Waterford one. Waterford receives very little subsidy compared with the level of economic activity generated by the airport. The same cannot be said for the other airports with PSOs.

A few airports should be shut down, except maybe for emergency flights or air sea rescue.

Dum_Dum

How long has this thing been going on?

I don't understand why a runway extension is so expensive and 'difficult'.

Neworder79

Waterford receives very little subsidy compared with the level of economic activity generated by the airport. The same cannot be said for the other airports with PSOs.

True Waterford doesn't have a PSO route, therefore it hasn't become dependent on the PSO grant aid for it's survival like Galway/Sligo/Donegal. This will stand to it if cutbacks hit PSO next year. And with the new management team and a professional business plan, I think they are going the right way.

But I'm not sure it's true to say Waterford is a leading light commercially though. It was 7th busiest in Ireland in 09 down 27% to 105,000 passengers, just ahead of Donegal and Sligo. It does receive capital grants for infrastructure, and operational subsidy for loss making airports to pay for, ATC, fire service etc, as well as regional development support from other organisations.

The only airline Aer Arran has up to now been cross subsidising it's operations through the PSO grants, and some of the Waterford routes are load shared with Galway which is hardly encouraging for future jet operations given the relatively small size of the ATR72.

Some of the other airports you refer to could survive without PSO. Kerry has operated profitably for the last 4 years and did not draw operational subsidy. PSO accounts for only 2% of passengers at Knock which has a more diverse route(25) and airline (4 scheduled + charters) mix and was profitable for at least 3 of the last 5 years also without operational subsidy.

merlante

Neworder79 wrote: »

True Waterford doesn't have a PSO route, therefore it hasn't become dependent on the PSO grant aid for it's survival like Galway/Sligo/Donegal. This will stand to it if cutbacks hit PSO next year. And withthe new management team and future planning, I think they are going the right way.

But I'm not sure it's true to say Waterford is a leading light commercially though. It was 7th busiest in Ireland in 09 down 27% to 105,000 passengers, just ahead of Donegal and Sligo. It does receive capital grants for infrastructure, and operational subsidy for loss making airports to pay for, ATC, fire service etc, as well as regional development support from other organisations.

The only customer Aer Arran has up to now been cross subsidising it's operations through the PSO contracts, and some of the Waterford routes are load shared with Galway which is hardly encouraging for the future of the routes given the relatively small size of the ATR72.

Some of the other airports you refer to could survive without PSO. Kerry has operated profitably for the last 4 years and did not draw operational subsidy. PSO accounts for only 2% of passengers at Knock which has a diverse route(25) and airline (4 scheduled + charters) mix and was profitable for the last 3 years also without operational subsidy.

Well I think you have to look at Waterford in the context of its total collapse and near closure in 2003, it's growth since then has been impressive. In fact if the recession hadn't intervened, Amsterdam and Paris would have been retained/introduced, but the Amsterdam route had no time to bed in (shared with Galway) and an announced Paris route never materialised. This is essentially all that you'd ever want from a regional airport, and I think in time, these and current routes would have grown passenger numbers to a sustainable level.

The Waterford - London Luton route is obviously profitable and is not shared with Galway. With three flights a day most days in both directions, this would be unsustainable for Aer Arann if they were not making money. In fact, Aer Arann cancelled the Amsterdam route and increased connections between Waterford and London, in particular, during the recession, and they are known to be under pressure financially. This route is the mainstay of the airport.

The Irish coast guard, a pilot training college and private operators are also customers of the airport. Plus there is also a business park that presumably earns the airport revenue as well.

I was not suggesting that Waterford would be the only airport that would survive the end of the PSO era, although in Waterford's case, I'd nearly be 100% sure, for obvious reasons. I don't think Aer Arann are a charitable organisation, still less in these times, so I'm sure they would not be operating so many unsubsidised flights out of Waterford if they were losing money. I think that in the next decade, Waterford will emerge as amongst the strongest of the regional airports.

The other question regarding some regional airports in the west is the amount of them and their relative proximity to each other, and particularly (struggling) international airports such as Cork and Shannon. There is no airport within 127km (Cork) or 1hr 53mins (Cork)/2hrs 14mins (Dublin) of Waterford, whereas Galway is only 84km/1hr 14mins from Shannon airport and Knock airport is a mere 60km/58mins from Sligo airport. The long term business cases for these airports would seem to be a lot weaker than Waterford's.

Neworder79

merlante wrote: »

The Waterford - London Luton route is obviously profitable and is not shared with Galway.

8 of the 18 Luton flights each week are operating via Galway.
From AerArann.com:
"All flights on Tuesday and Wednesday and, from May 30 2010, flights RE503 and RE504 on Monday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday include a 20-minute stopver in Waterford. All other flights on this route are direct."

I do agree with most of you're other points though. In some ways the current setup is better for Waterford with no competition for Aer Arann and frequent ATR connections to the key UK cities. I'd imagine once a runway extension is added (if big enough), an airline like Ryanair would sweep up the UK market with much less frequent, higher capacity flights, though they could also grow demand.

Not sure how sustainable the European routes were give they didn't work with an ATR and load split with Galway. They were also getting close to the operational limits of the aircraft with Paris.

merlante

Neworder79 wrote: »

8 of the 18 Luton flights each week are operating via Galway.
From AerArann.com:
"All flights on Tuesday and Wednesday and, from May 30 2010, flights RE503 and RE504 on Monday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday include a 20-minute stopver in Waterford. All other flights on this route are direct."

I do agree with most of you're other points though. In some ways the current setup is better for Waterford with no competition for Aer Arann and frequent ATR connections to the key UK cities. I'd imagine once a runway extension is added (if big enough), an airline like Ryanair would sweep up the UK market with much less frequent, higher capacity flights, though they could also grow demand.

Not sure how sustainable the European routes were give they didn't work with an ATR and load split with Galway. They were also getting close to the operational limits of the aircraft with Paris.

Fair enough, most of the time when I get that flight it is not shared. The odd time it was I thought it was some kind of temporary measure. Even so, 10 non-shared flights a week to Luton is not bad.

I agree re the runway extension, I actually think it could be catastrophic for Waterford airport. If Ryanair took an interest, they would come in, destroy Aer Arann on prices, and clear out when once the dust has settled. Ryanair has said on a number of occasions that there is no future in the regional airports "especially Waterford", he added on one occasion. It's better for him if people leave the country from the south east via Cork or Dublin.

The Amsterdam route was not really given a chance imho. It only operated for one year as the economy was on the turn. I heard various reports from "too expensive" to "hard to get a seat on a plane". Hard to know how it did. The main value in Amsterdam is in the hub, probably, as opposed to Amsterdam itself. Speaking personally, a continental European hub would add a whole new dimension to the airport, and would open up a large swathe of northern Europe by plane + train. Paris would be nice, and might even be better. I'd be fairly confident that after the recession Galway-Waterford-Amsterdam could do well.

shanemul

It's not good just looking at 1 route in particular, you have to look to the routes that took place in the past, Faro, Malaga and Amsterdam all these routes when operated were full which shows there is potential for charter flights to these and other destinations. If the airport does get the runway extension there will be airlines waiting to come in to start routes Flybe would be one i'd say that would jump at the chance. Everything is now in place apart from the runway to increase traffic at the airport and from the promtional video they have every stage planned out to make the airport the gateway that is and should be.

Neworder79

I'm sure there is a market for hub connection and Waterford could run some holiday routes seasonally with the right aircraft and marketing. I'm not arguing against the runway, would like to see it develop and grow. But all the routes mentioned were load shared with Galway on a 100 seat aircraft and that was in the height of the boom. Without any real info on how the routes performed financially it's hard to say demand is proven on that alone.

shanemul

To be fair the loads on these flights were small with the majority of the passengers being picked up in Waterford so if the routes are there, there is enough of a demand in Waterford and the whole of the south east

merlante

shanemul wrote: »

It's not good just looking at 1 route in particular, you have to look to the routes that took place in the past, Faro, Malaga and Amsterdam all these routes when operated were full which shows there is potential for charter flights to these and other destinations. If the airport does get the runway extension there will be airlines waiting to come in to start routes Flybe would be one i'd say that would jump at the chance. Everything is now in place apart from the runway to increase traffic at the airport and from the promtional video they have every stage planned out to make the airport the gateway that is and should be.

True enough, if Knock can run flights to the, say, the Canaries then so can Waterford. Just be worried about Ryanair coming in.

gscully

merlante wrote: »

True enough, if Knock can run flights to the, say, the Canaries then so can Waterford. Just be worried about Ryanair coming in.

Ideally, Ryanair would come in for longer-haul flights and Aer Arann would continue to cater for the UK-bound passengers. I doubt a monopoly on routes would be allowed though.

Neworder79

True enough, if Knock can run flights to the, say, the Canaries then so can Waterford.

Yes Ireland West Airport has done well with charter routes in the past with Crete, Bourgas, Dubrovnic, Split, Ibiza, Mallorca, Alicante, Barcelona, Cadiz, Malaga, Faro, Zurich, Lanzarote, Feurtaventura all server at one stage, as well as pilgrimage charters. Ryanair have moved in on Alicante, Reus and Faro this year in the absence of some of the defunct tour operators.

If you look at the images on the Ireland West site you'll see the people are coming from a wide area across the West and Midlands. So Waterford would need to market itself to the wider south-east region in-order to create sufficient demand. It's location isn't particularly convenient but the upgraded roads could change that perception.

The Runway length is also important. Most charters operate 180-210 seat B738 or A321 as Knock has the runway and facilities to handle them on longer routes like the Canaries. The current proposal for Waterford could just take an A320 or load restricted B738 (like Ryanair at Belfast City), but is probably not adequate for longer European routes with a full load, unless they become economical with smaller jets in the future.

Just be worried about Ryanair coming in.

Double edged sword. Ryanair have the ability to create demand, the scale to test new routes where others wouldn't, and would probably relocate some Cork services if they got a better deal. But they would also kill off competition and reduce frequencies compared to now.

savic04

Can never understand why they didnt build it correctly when the money was there.

An airport that cant handle 737s isnt really an airport.

Knock Airport has been a massive success, I have no doubt Waterford could be too, but as mentioned not depending on Waterford alone, it needs to be marketed better in Wexford, KK, Tipp.

The fact Dublin is an hour away from northern parts of Wexford, and KK, and Cork airport is an hour away from most parts of Co. Waterford, Tipp etc.. makes it hard though, so its hard to know.

The charters that Slatterys/Aer Arann ran a few years ago were successful once they got over initial problems, but as mentioned needed to be shared with Galway on some routes.

Neworder79

The proposal for a low cost international airport in Arklow wouldn't help Waterfrod were it to happen.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/0625/1224273271194.html

merlante

Regarding the positioning of Waterford airport, for years people have complained, but with the new infrastructure that has been rolled out, these complaints are now largely groundless.

According to google maps:
Kilkenny - Waterford Airport: 1hr 6mins (will probably improve after motorway is finished)
Carlow - Waterford Airport: 1hr 33mins (will dramatically improve after motorway is finished)
Wexford - Waterford Airport: 1hr 13mins
Clonmel - Waterford Airport: 1hr 5mins
Dungaravan - Waterford Airport: 50mins

In comparison, Kilkenny - Dublin airport: 1hr 29mins (will improve after motorway), Carlow - Dublin airport: 1hr 7mins, Dungarvan - Cork airport: 1hr 9mins.

If you take into account the extra delays and check-in times at Dublin airport (5-10mins checkin + security in Waterford, can check in 30mins before flight), and the fact that you are unlikely to have delays on the roads to Waterford, whereas with Dublin the N7 or M50 can be backed up or be undergoing construction, Waterford airport is much more convenient for practically all of the south east than Dublin. Even for Carlow, it would work out a bit quicker, particularly after the motorway is finished.

As for marketing, I can't speak for the rest of the south east, but there has been blanket marketing of the airport within the Waterford city area. You at least have to have Waterford people using it, I suppose, before you will convince anyone else. And I think more and more Waterford people have used it.

merlante

Neworder79 wrote: »

The proposal for a low cost international airport in Arklow wouldn't help Waterfrod were it to happen.

Who is suggesting that? Arklow is too close to Dublin, serves only a very small population in its immediate environs, and does not have good enough infrastructure, except to Dublin... which has no need of an airport in Arklow... especially since it has just invested a ton of cash in Terminal 2. Plus it would have no chance of a PSO. The whole idea is just ridiculous.

testicle

merlante wrote: »

Who is suggesting that? Arklow is too close to Dublin, serves only a very small population in its immediate environs, and does not have good enough infrastructure, except to Dublin... which has no need of an airport in Arklow... especially since it has just invested a ton of cash in Terminal 2. Plus it would have no chance of a PSO. The whole idea is just ridiculous.

Beauvais is too close to Paris, serves only a very small population in its immediate environs, and does not have good enough infrastructure, except to Paris... which has no need of an airport in Beauvais... especially since it has just invested a ton of cash in Terminals 2 & 3.

merlante

testicle wrote: »

Beauvais is too close to Paris, serves only a very small population in its immediate environs, and does not have good enough infrastructure, except to Paris... which has no need of an airport in Beauvais... especially since it has just invested a ton of cash in Terminals 2 & 3.

Actually Beauvais is slightly larger than Waterford in terms of population, which is why the airport exists at all. The reason why it's useful, is because Ryanair uses it because it gets it for cheap, otherwise it would just be an airfield. However, Ryanair appear to be content operating out of Dublin airport.

It takes 1hr 15mins to get from Beauvais to Paris and it'll take about 2hrs to get from Waterford airport to Dublin when the motorway is finished this year, so if Ryanair really wanted to get out of Dublin, they could nearly move to Waterford for the cost of a longer Runway. The only possible argument for Arklow is if Ryanair wanted to build it and operate out of it, and even then, it would have an adverse affect on Dublin and Waterford airports.

Would never happen.

Jamie2k9

Kilkenny to House of Waterford Crystal is just over 30mins with the new M9 so the airport would by around 40mins.

Is the runway extinction going ahead or not??

Is there any news on new routes with Aer Arann from the airport or even a new airline coming and starting routes.

Passenger numbers on the WAT - Luton route are up between JAN - April this year but MAN and BHX are down but not by a lot.