Indeed and who is to say that there won't be more troops in Shannon next year after the election. If airlines want to fly transatlantic routes from Cork or elsewhere they will on the basis that the routes are economically viable and that the local infrastructure can support the route not on the basis of keeping local interests happy.
Cork airport is located on top of a hill. It wasn't someone from Shannon who decided to locate it there. Cork will always be held back because of it's location. If you want a level playing field i'd suggest that the best thing to level is the airport and start again. You can't possibly choose a worse location next time around.
The glee that is sometimes expressed by some posters on bad news stories for Shannon is really amazing. Shannon is the transatlantic gateway to the west because it is the location that makes the most sense at the moment. Cork will have transatlantic routes, of that i'm quite sure but we all know that up until airlines started using 757's there wasn't the type of aircraft suitable to operate T/A out of Cork. The stop over would have made no difference whatsoever. Hey, how about you try trade a New York for an Amsterdam or CDG they'd love those routes in Shannon.
