Minister Ryan Visits Shannon
The Shannon Group welcomed the Minister for Transport, Eamon Ryan T.D. to Shannon Airport and the surrounding campus on 11th February where the Minister met with Shannon Group Chairperson Padraig Ó Céidigh and CEO Mary Considine and had the opportunity to see first hand the recent airport enhancements and the investment that has taken place on the wider airport campus.
The Minister also received a tour of the airport including the world’s first Duty Free which was established at the airport in 1947 and has grown into a multi-billion-dollar global retail industry. He visited the airport’s US Customs and Border Protection facility, the first US preclearance facility in Europe established at Shannon in 1986 and which subsequently, in 2010, became the first in the world to offer full preclearance for private aircraft. In addition, the Minister was given a demonstration of the new airport security screening system – the first of its kind in any state airport, which is halving passenger time in this area.
Commenting on the Minister’s visit to Shannon, the CEO of the Shannon Group, Mary Considine said, “We had productive discussions with Minister Ryan on decarbonisation, and as a recent signatory to the Toulouse Declaration pledge towards net zero carbon by 2050, we are committed to exploring all opportunities to advance this goal. The Minister’s visit gave us an opportunity to show him the significant capital projects we were able to undertake as a result of Government support. In addition, we welcomed the opportunity to brief the Minister on our recovery and rebuilding plans for the airport and across our campus following the devastation left in the wake of the pandemic.”
Shannon Airport is among 200 airports across Europe to sign a groundbreaking agreement towards aviation’s net-zero 2050 goal. The “Toulouse Declaration” marks the first time that European Governments, the European Commission, Industry, Unions and other key stakeholders formally align on aviation decarbonisation. It is a highly significant moment, paving the way for the concrete next steps, both in the establishment of an EU Pact for Aviation Decarbonisation, and globally as we look to the UN’s ICAO to set a global goal for international aviation later this year. Shannon Airport has joined Dublin Airport, Cork Airport, Ireland West Airport and Belfast City Airport in signing up to the “Toulouse Declaration” from Ireland, with nearly 400 airports from across the globe also signing the declaration.
Related Posts
Significant Increase in Passenger Numbers at Shannon →
Busy St.Patrick’s Day Period for Shannon →
Women in Aviation Event Hailed “a resounding success” →
