Ryan2000
To be fair to Tom, Irish Aviation Policy has been a joke. The Shannon Stopover (a throw back to the flying boat era) has hindered long haul flights out of Ireland for decades and continues to do so even as Aerlingus is about to be privatised.
The piecemeal development of Dublin Airport is also testimony to years of neglect as is the lack of any real vision for Cork untill very recently.
Having said that an odd diversion from Cork isn't going to save many jobs at Shannon. The DAA have rightly identified the fact that Shannon's cost base is unsustainable and have correctly put an embargo on any further recruitment.
Any further withdrawals from Cork could also have serious implications for jobs there as the days of loss making state airports being bailed out appear to be an end. Servisair in particular will be affected when CSA, Easyjet and Loganair go and BMI Baby drop Durham. Also Charters are significantly down this summer as Aerlingus open more and more Sun Routes.