South East will benefit from continued development of Waterford Airport

MEP Liadh Ní Riada and Senator David Cullinane led a Sinn Féin delegation today to meet with management at Waterford Airport. Councillors Pat Fitzgerald and Jim Griffen also attended the meeting. The team began by congratulating management and staff on the Luton and Birmingham services which began last month.

Liadh Ní Riada committed to supporting the continued development of the airport in Brussel, stating that runway expansion would be key to securing more routes, adding:

“Waterford Airport is strategically improtant for the South-East and serves a wide catchment area. Continued air connectivity with Britain is vital for business and tourism, and I am delighted that VLM will now operate a substantial schedule of services from Waterford Airport.

“I understand that in order to secure more regional services the Airport will need to expand, and I have committed to working in Brussels and Strasbourg to support this development, including capital development, as best I can.”

Senator David Cullinane said:

“We had a positive meeting with airport management today where we discussed current barriers to expansion, as well as opportunities to develop this important piece of infrastructure for the good of Waterford and the South-East.

“Waterford Airport has the potential to boost tourist numbers and to continue to act as a gateway for the region to London, Britain and Europe. It also provides a range of other services including acting as a base for the Coast Guard search and rescue operations for the Southeast.

“The Airport has plans to expand the runway to accommodate larger aircraft thus expanding potential at the Airport. This is vital and needs to be supported by Government. Previous commitments made under Transport 21 need to be re examined and delivered upon where appropriate. This must involve greater capital investment as a recognition of the strategic and economic importance of the airport.