Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary last night said “the only offer available to the Government” was to give the building known as Hangar 6 to his company.
Mr O’Leary turned up outside the Burlington Hotel in Dublin where Taoiseach Brian Cowen was attending an event.
“The Taoiseach doesn’t know much about hangars and he knows even less about aviation maintenance,” he said.
“The only offer that’s available to the Government, if they want to prevent 300 more jobs going to Europe in the next four or five weeks, is give us Hangar 6.”
Mr O’Leary said he was calling on Mr Cowen to state exactly what Aer Lingus had put into the facility which Ryanair wants to secure as a base for a new maintenance plant. He claimed Aer Lingus had put “nothing” into the hangar.
He said the building should either be sold or rented to Ryanair, insisting nobody had to break a law or break the terms of a lease in the process.
“The Government need to do one thing if they want to save 300 jobs here in Dublin airport. Call the DAA and ask them to move Aer Lingus, given that they have nothing in Hangar 6 it won’t take long and it won’t be very complicated.”
He said Ryanair had not made an offer for the old facilities known as Hangars 3 and 4 because they were too small.
“We’re not going to be screwed by the DAA again and again and again,” he said.
MARY MINIHAN and DEAGLÁN de BRÉADÚN