Shannon Airport Thread [Mod Warning in First Post]

The UK Airport Provisional Statistics for January reveal an overall increase in passengers of 2.4% against the same month from last year.

The positive growth figures at Stansted, Birmingham and Liverpool’s John Lennon airport were offset by falls at Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester and Edinburgh.

I wonder could an earlier Aer Lingus flight address the falling trend at Heathrow?

1 less rotation a week aswell, flying to Lanzarote saturday afternoon instead of LHR.

Interesting STN numbers went up when they cut a couple of flights a week to there!

Oct 2013 is when they started flying A319 from SNN.

Connect Ireland to launch campaign at Shannon Airport (Business & Leadership)

Clare hurling manager Davy Fitzgerald has teamed up with legendary rugby international Keith Wood in a new Connect Ireland campaign, which is launching at Shannon Airport.

They are the latest Connect Ireland ambassadors to spur parishes, clubs and communities to link up with family, friends and contacts abroad to sell Ireland, boost job creation and create a future in Ireland for our brightest and best.

A similar branding and information campaign at Dublin Airport has already helped create 300 direct jobs across Ireland.



Limerick Leader marks 125 years in print with exhibition at Shannon Airport (LL)

The exhibition features some of the most evocative images of life in Limerick during the 1970s, in a collaboration between the Limerick Museum and Archives (LM&A), the Limerick Leader and Limerick School of Art and Design (LSAD).

Over 180 images will go on display, including 69 created by third year students of the Limerick School of Art and Design in response to the Limerick Leader archive photographs.

The exhibition will run in Shannon Airport from Tuesday next, March 11 until September, when it will move into Limerick city.



The airport is getting very event orientated, do they have aspirations for convention centre?

highlydebased wrote: »

1 less rotation a week aswell, flying to Lanzarote saturday afternoon instead of LHR.

Interesting STN numbers went up when they cut a couple of flights a week to there!

STN numbers went up because the lhr morning flights are so late now that you cant get to centre london before 11AM.........ridiculous....! Hate flying ryanair to stn.....

Airport board exploring new opportunities (Limerick Post)

A pilot training school and a museum are among the projects being considered by the Shannon Airport Authority as it steps up its commercial brief to improve the airport’s earning potential.

And the changeover to a more customer-friendly environment began last week with the airport authority offering one of the lowest long-term parking rates in the country.

Shannon chief executive Neil Pakey was briefing members of Limerick city council’s transport committee when he said that the airport is looking at a broad spectrum of initiatives including pilot training and having the airport look at adopting an educational role.

The board is also planning to establish a ‘Friends of Shannon Airport’ support organization, based on the success of a similar group in Liverpool.

“Their enthusiasm and support for the airport was enormous. They organised school groups to see how the airport worked; they helped out with large groups of wheelchair users and helped publicise the airport. They were absolutely fantastic and they are coming over to brief the Shannon airport board before we invite people to join our own group”, he said.

Friends of Shannon Airport

This should be of interest to those of us who would like to get actively involved.

Museum

Don’t we have an aviation museum in Foynes already, i.e. Flying Boat Museum?

The Atlantic AirVenture has also a small aviation museum.

Pilot Training School

They seem to be serious about this.

I wonder are they filling the gap after the collapse of the Waterford Pilot Training College?

Speaking of schools, the airport group has already been involved in other areas of training i.e. Shannon College of Hotel Management.

This Shannon College is one of Europe’s leading hotel management colleges providing excellence in professional education since 1951.

Which probably explains, why it enjoys a 100 % graduate employment rate.

I presume this was one of the innovations from the Brendan O’Regan era?

It has 400 students enroled (200 are international students).

golfball37 wrote: »

Shannon Airport have been trying to pawn off the Hotel College to NUIG for years now.

Is the new CX saying they are keeping it?

There must be some form of affiliation to NUIG.

Shannon College of Hotel Management is a Recognised College of the National University of Ireland.

Both of the degree courses offered by Shannon College are Level 8 Honours Degrees awarded by the National University of Ireland.

The latest news article states that it is a wholly owned enterprise of the Shannon Airport Authority.

I have not read anything yet about them off loading it.

The fact that it is serves our tourist needs could mean that it will remain in the Shannon Heritage portfolio.

Shannon Group Plc is being formed as the new umbrella for a group of four commercially driven businesses who are focused on delivering economic benefits for the Shannon/Limerick area, the West of Ireland and the wider national economy.


The four businesses are

• Shannon International Airport
• Shannon Heritage
• International Aviation Services Centre (IASC)
• Shannon Development.

I had a look at the 'Friends of Liverpool Airport' Website as mentioned in the Limerick Post article.

It's not a strong website but their quarterly magazine is a good read.

Aims and Objectives of 'Friends of Liverpool Airport'

• To promote the use of, and need for, Liverpool Airport.
• To encourage the preservation, development and improvement of the Airport and its facilities.
• To educate public opinion and give advice and information about the Airport, the airlines and services offered.
• To promote civic pride in our local Airport.

Curious to see as to what could unfold here.

Boston and Limerick to Twin their Universities (UL)

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is to be signed on St. Patrick’s Day, Monday 17th March, to formally launch collaborative programmes between University of Massachusetts Boston and the University of Limerick.

The largest number of UL’s international students come from the United States of America and there are currently 290 US students studying at UL. This number is set to rise as the University increases it’s internationalisation as part of the President’s Strategic Plan “Pioneering & Connected”.

This should have a positive effect on the SNN-BOS route.

Quintessentially Aviation Handling opens new Shannon facility (Blue Sky News)

Quintessentially Aviation Handling, the newest member to join the Air Elite Network, has celebrated the completion of their new executive passenger & crew terminal facilities at Shannon Airport (EINN).

The new, state-of-the-art, 1750 square foot terminal includes a luxurious and contemporary, full-service executive passenger lounge designed to cater to Quintessentially’s discerning business & general aviation clientele. The facility also boasts an impressive airside crew rest lounge complete with satellite TV, Netflix, WiFi, complimentary catering, featuring modern Swiss furnishings. As an additional convenience, the terminal is equipped with its own airbridge to assist with passenger care.



Shannon Airport is a popular gateway airport for European, Russian and Middle Eastern business aviation flights destined for the United States. The 24/7/365 operations, clear weather records, 10,495 foot (3,200 meter) runway, and the fact that it hosts the only pre-customs clearance facility outside of the Americas makes the airport an attractive technical stop for transatlantic flights to the USA.

There were 4,500 business jet movements in 2011.

Has anybody seen statistics for 2012, 2013?

Permission sought for demolition of Aviation Fuel Storage Tanks (Clare Champion)

Also this week, Shannon Airport Authority have applied for planning permission for the demolition of five 19.5m diameter x 14.65m high storage tanks. They are not currently in use and, in the past, were used as an aviation fuel storage facility.

Shannon Jetty dedicated to aviation fuel imports.

Looking at the aerial image below, it appears that the aviation fuel storage area has been upgraded with concrete containment basins.

I presume that these five tanks are to be demolished as they would not fulfil environment regulations?

Not aviation related, but it is additional business for the airport. From the news section of the airport's site:

http://www.shannonairport.ie/gns/about-us/latest-news/latest-news/14-03-26/ARCH_to_establish_new_specialist_work_at_height_training_centre_at_Shannon_Airport.aspx


ARCH to establish new specialist ‘work at height’ training centre at Shannon Airport

26 March 2014

ARCH to establish new specialist ‘work at height’ training centre at Shannon Airport

New lease of life for iconic Boiler House building on approach route to airport

ARCH, a specialist technical training provider focusing on the wind energy and other ‘work at height’ sectors, is to establish a new training facility at Shannon Airport to deliver safety training for technicians working on tall structures. The new training centre will see ARCH convert the former Boiler House building on the approach road to the airport into a specialist, new facility. The iconic 175sq metres building has been disused for over 20 years and its 16metre high ceiling is ideal for a work-at-height training centre.

1943 - BOAC - (Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 14) - near Shannon-Rinneanna Airfield
1943 - BOAC - (Fatalities: 10 / Occupants: 25) - Dingle Penninsula
1946 - Aer Lingus - (Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 19) - 1 mile from Shannon Airport
1946 - Pan Am - (Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 36) - Shannon Airport
1946 - TWA - (Fatalities: 9 / Occupants: 23) - 1 mile from Shannon Airport
1948 - Pan Am - (Fatalities: 30 / Occupants: 31) - 1/2 mile from Shannon Airport
1949 - Transocean Airlines - (Fatalities: 8 / Occupants: 58) - Lurga Point, Clare Coast
1954 - KLM - (Fatalities: 28 / Occupants: 56) - 1.6 miles from Shannon Airport
1956 - Swissair - (Fatalities: 4 / Occupants: 4) - Shannon Airport
1958 - KLM - (Fatalities: 99 / Occupants: 99) - 112 miles west of Shannon
1959 - Pan Am - (Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 8) - Shannon Airport
1960 - Alitalia - (Fatalities: 34 / Occupants: 52) - 1 mile from Shannon Airport
1961 - Cunard Eagle - (Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 6) - Shannon Airport
1961 - President Airlines - (Fatalities: 83 / Occupants: 83) - 1 mile from Shannon Airport
1977 - Interconair - (Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 6) - Shannon Airport
1999 - Channel Express - (Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 6) - Shannon Airport
2011 - Aer Arann - (Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 25) - Shannon Airport

Following Gordon Sheffers account above where they rescued most of the passengers from the Transocean Airlines crash, I found this amazing database at Aviation Safety Network. :cool:

From that database I compiled this list of aircraft accidents (Cat A1) that occurred in Irish airspace with destination / departure for Shannon Airport / Foynes Port.

Category A1 is classed as an accident where the aircraft is damaged beyond repair.

It’s hard to believe that so many fatal accidents occurred around Shannon Airport in the early years.

The findings from the accidents reveal a lot of tragedy.

I’d say from all the tragic accidents that happened, the KLM crash in 1954 with 28 fatalities must have gnawed the tower control staff at Shannon if this following account was true.

KLM Flight (Amsterdam-Shannon-New York)

From a Dutch Aviation website by Paul van Weezepoel

On September 5, 1954, the Lockheed Super Constellation PH-LKY Triton was on a flight Amsterdam-New York with 46 passengers and a crew of 10 aboard.

The aircraft made a planned refueling stop at Shannon, Ireland on flight number 633. Take-off from there was at 02:30.

Some 35-40 seconds after take-off, the Triton crashed on the mud flats in the Shannon River, about 2500m from the end of the runway.

Nobody at Shannon Airport had an idea the crash had occurred when navigator Tieman "staggered into the terminal building covered with mud", after having crossed water and mud. It was only then that rescue operations started.

The aircraft was partly submerged, with the cabin filled with fuel fumes, which caused those passengers still in it to become unconscious, and drown in the incoming tide.

25 passengers and 3 crew members were killed.

Three weeks later the Limerick and District Branch of the National Union of Journalists condemned "false and malicious reports in foreign newspapers about the crash which cast a slur on Shannon". It's hard to understand what they can have meant by this. It seems obvious that, had airport tower personnel taken the trouble to watch the aircraft for less than a minute after take-off, they could not have missed seeing the crash, probably saving many lives. They must have been a carefree lot: Nor was any notice taken of absence of any radio messages from the Triton.

An investigative board later gave as PROBABLE CAUSE:

1) Failure of the captain to correlate and interpret his instrument indications properly during flap retraction, resulting in necessary action not being taken in sufficient time. This failure was partially accounted for by the effect on instrument indications of inadvertent and unexpected gear re-extension.

2) Loss of aircraft performance due to inadvertent landing gear re-extension.

3) The captain failed to maintain sufficient climb to give him an opportunity of meeting unexpected occurrences."

Viruly, who was only a year from being pensioned, was devastated by the accident and very bitter about his subsequent treatment by KLM.

But one can only conclude from what is known now, that this captain, one of KLM's most experienced flyers, had been sadly remiss in the handling of the aircraft under his command.

Aided and abetted by the lackadaisical tower personnel, this resulted in the loss of, not only a brand-new aircraft with less than 2500 hours of operation, but also that of 28 human lives.

I must have a look at that book the next time I’m in the library.

The Limerick City Library pdf below shows newspaper cuttings from the 1954 crash.

There is also film material of the crash to be seen on that Dutch website (then click top right corner image). It’s a Dutch news reel and the KLM crash report begins at 12:30.