RYANAIR CHIEF executive Michael O’Leary has claimed that Shannon Airport “has priced itself out of existence” in a letter to Clare County Council.
The claim met with an angry response from the Shannon Airport Authority, which described the letter as “self-serving and having no basis in fact”.
In the letter, Mr O’Leary states that traffic at Shannon “has continued to implode” as a result of cost increases imposed by the Dublin Airport Authority and “will fall below 1.5 million in 2011”.
In a table contained in the letter, Mr O’Leary estimates that traffic out of Shannon this year will be 1.4 million – almost half its 2007 peak of 3.6 million.
In the letter, Mr O’Leary states: “Ryanair has consistently stated that it can and will deliver rapid traffic growth at the main Irish airports”.
He writes: “Sadly, the imposition by the last government of a €10 travel tax in April 2009 destroyed our low cost base in Shannon and at a stroke switched off thousands of our price sensitive inbound visitors”.
A spokesperson for the SAA said it was “ bizarre and ironic considering that Ryanair, in accusing the airport of over-pricing, has itself recently introduced a compulsory €2 each-way ‘improbability charge’ for all passengers.
“Ryanair’s so-called ‘estimate’ for traffic at Shannon is false and bears no relation to the true expected position at the airport for 2011. Passenger charges at Shannon increased by €1.58 per passenger in late 2010. This was the first adjustment in six years.”
The letter by Mr O’Leary to the council arose from the local authority passing a motion calling on Ryanair to deliver on its commitment to increase passenger traffic at Shannon following the abolition of the €10 air travel tax.
Mr O’Leary described the motion as “inaccurate in fact and absurd”.
