The major development, which will also involve the construction of a 13,000 sq. unit to house a data post-processing facility, is part of an overall plan by local-ly- based businessman, Noel Hanley, who has taken over the majority shareholding Euroceltic Airways. Mr. Hanley, chief execu-tive officer of Global Ocean Technologies Ltd. (GOTECH), a Waterford-based international ship-ping company, acquired the majority shareholding the UK-based airline, which runs daily flights between Waterford and London-Luton, on Thurs-day last.

Speaking to the Waterford News & Star, Mr. Hanley — whose company is a world leader in hydro-graphic surveys and deep sea telecommunications cable-laying — as well as owning a number of roll-on/ roll-off ferries, is trans-ferring Euroceltic’s base from Luton to Waterford. He is also establishing an aircraft maintenance oper-ation at the South East Regional Airport through which most of the addi-tional job creation oppor-tunities will be achieved. The new majority share-holder plans to increase employment at the airport from 58 at present to approximately 100 and to introduce a number of new services, including week-end flights to Nantes, in north-western France, dur-ing the summer. A small shareholding in Euroceltic has also been acquired by a Waterford business con-sortium, which invested in the company late last year.

The Dublin man, who has been based here for the past four years and who has his own plane based at the Regional Airport, said that the current service to Luton would be retained athough in the coming weeks there would be a slight change to the timing of the Liverpool service. “We plan to fly out on Friday’s with the return journey on Sunday evening instead of Mon-day which will mean that people taking a week-end break for business or pleasure will not have to take an extra day off work,” he said.

The takeover of the air-line, along with the two Fokker F27 aircraft used on the scheduled twice daily service to London-Luton and the weekly serv-ice to Liverpool, was effected from the company founded in 1999 by busi-nessman Diran Kazandjian and his wife Jennifer. The airline was granted its Air Operator’s Certifi-cate by the UK’s Civil Avi-ation Authority on Febru-ary 12, 2001 with its inau-gural flight to Waterford taking place two days later. Euroceltic’s operating headquarters will be relo-cated to Waterford.

The airline’s Irish roots will continue to be reflected in the company’s logo that features a blue, yellow and green Celtic design and is incorporated in the aircraft livery and staff uniforms. “It is vital for the whole South East region to have a direct air link with the UK and Continental Europe and all involved in this acquisition are confident that Euroceltic Airways has a bright future which will also help to ensure the ongoing viability of the South East Regional Air-port in Waterford,” said Mr Hanley.

With the co-operation of the UK Civil Aviation Authority, it is now planned to transfer Euro-celtic’s technical and maintenance services to Waterford. A new building with 40,000 square feet of hanger space at the airport will accommodate this new project. In addition, GOTECH, which has been headquar-tered in Waterford for the past three years, is build-ing a 13,000 square foot unit to house a data post processing facility for its hydrographic survey work, which includes a € 31 mil-lion Atlantic seabed survey for the Irish Government. This is one of the biggest seabed mapping opera-tions undertaken anywhere in the world. Mr. Nicholas Fewer, Deputy Chairman of the Regional Airport board, welcomed the takeover of Euroceltic by Mr. Hanley and said Waterford and the South East region will now have its own airline, with all the opportunities and potential for development which that presents.

MERITS SUPPORT However, he feels that for the venture to succeed financially and the Kil-lowen facility to develop as an important regional airport, it is absolutely crit-ical that it enjoys the high-est possible level of sup-port from those who have previously used the service and those who have not yet done so. “The Regional Airport is an essential part of this region’s infrastructure just as the Port of Waterford is and, indeed, just as the rail and road links with other urban centres are. Unlike the regional airports in Kerry, Galway and Mayo, this facility has never received the type of State funding that is needed to move it onto the next level where larger jet aircraft can be facilitated.

“It is our intention to con-tinue lobbying the relevant Ministers and their senior officials to ensure that our case is to the fore when they make decisions on funding and status. In the meantime, we would emphasise that as many people, as possible from right across the South East must use our services, and in so doing, secure the future of their regional air- port and the airline that serves it.

“The people of the South East can now take a pain-less and cost efficient flight from their own area without having to endure a difficult three hour car journey, long delays and costly car-parking charges from other airport, so it is in their own best interests to use and support this air-port. “As well as those travel-ling to Greater London, the Euroceltic service has proved of considerable benefit to business people and holiday-makers mak-ing onward connections to other European destina-tions. Alicante, Munich, Athens, Paris, Barcelona, Tenerife and Zurich are affordably accessible via London-Luton and this region is now only a cou-ple of short flights away from most of mainland Europe.

For those whose journeys will not take them beyond the UK, London-Luton is superbly located for pas-sengers destined for Lon-don, the South East of Eng-land and the Midlands. In fact, the airport is just 32 miles from central London and there are up to 11 trains per hour that take just 30 minutes to get to King’s Cross or St Pancras.” Members of the Airport Board have set themselves an immediate target of 55,000 passengers per year, which they estimate would allow the facility to break even. Despite the fact that the service has had spectacular growth in the number of passengers using Euroceltic, it is not enough to generate profits.

VITAL ELEMENTS “The airport and its air service are vital elements of regional infrastructure and the survival and devel-opment of both have very serious implications for every person living and working in the five coun-ties of the South East,” said Mr. Fewer. “We are very satisfied with the quality of the service being provided by Euroceltic and we will continue to support them in every way possible in their endeavours to increase their market share. It’s vital though that we do this in conjunction with the people of the South East whether they be members of the business community, local authori- ties or – perhaps most importantly — the travel-ling public,” he added.

The takeover has been welcomed by the Mayor, Alderman Hilary Quinlan, who said that the deal would ensure the contin-ued service from the air-port which has proved so popular with travellers from the south East and so important to the tourism and business interests in the area. “The transfer of the base from Luton to Waterford is a further boost and I would like to wish the new com-pany every success and pledge my full support as Mayor and that of the City Council to Mr. Hanley and his team and to the Airport generally,” said the Mayor. Last week’s development has also been welcomed by Waterford Chamber of Commerce, which has offered to help promote Euroceltic’s services with the business community by encouraging its mem-bers to use the service to Luton and Liverpool as often as possible.

Chamber President, Nick Donnelly said “This serv-ice has really caught on with the public and the plane occupancy has been excellent. This business has been built up from scratch by Euroceltic in just twelve months. The public in the South East have now come to rely on the service and greatly value it. The Cham-ber sees this acquisition as a move to build on this growth and we urge every-body in the South East to check out the Euroceltic schedule first when making travel plans. The conven-ience of being able to fly in and out of Waterford can-not be overstated.”