A new daily service from Waterford Regional Airport is expected to begin in the next few days. The Waterford-London service, which ended on January 5th when British Airways withdrew from the route, was due to resume with a new carrier, Euroceltic, last Monday.
Mr Peter Tawse, the airport manager, said Euroceltic did not conduct its "proving flight" until last Friday, however, and this had been too late to begin the new service on schedule. Final arrangements were now being put in place, and the service was expected to begin in a matter of days.
Euroceltic will initially provide a daily return service to and from Luton, with a 12.15 p.m. departure from Waterford. A second flight is to be introduced from April. The aircraft is a 48-seat Fokker F27 turboprop, compared to the 29-seat craft used by British Airways.
The new service is seen as a lifeline for the airport, which does not benefit from a public service obligation contract and has struggled financially for many years. (A public service contract gives a State subsidy to airlines providing a service within Ireland.)
The airport management is confident that a new four-year development plan, including a runway extension, will transform the airport into a major gateway to the south-east.
