It is a bitter sweet week for Ireland West Airport Knock.
As the Airport prepares to close for one month from this Saturday, there has been broad welcome for a major funding announcement made yesterday for the facility.
As part of a revised €80 million funding package for Irish aviation, the Government has announced that €6 million is to be shared between Ireland West Airport Knock, Kerry and Donegal Airports.
In recognition of the very difficult winter season being faced by the aviation sector the government has decided to provide an extra €48 million in supports for 2021, in addition to those announced in Budget 2021.
The Department of Transport will provide further operational and capital funding supports of €22m for Cork and Shannon Airport, which is in addition to the €10m in capital funding announced in Budget 2021.
For the smaller regional airports of Knock, Kerry and Donegal, in addition to the €21m in funding available under the Regional Airports Programme for 2021, further operational support of €6m will be made available.
The funding package will also include an Airport Charges Rebate Scheme for January to March 2021, subject to State Aid approval from the EU Commission. This is one of the recommendations made by the Task Force for Aviation Recovery and, at an estimated cost of €20m, will support the retention of core connectivity through the Winter season.
