A lot. There's a road at both ends of the runway which would need rerouting or tunnelling. Terminal while functional for a 70 seater is far too small for a 189 seater.
The extension that never happened was apparently still too short for a fully laden 738, it was priced at >€25M.
The M9 and N25 are both killing and capable of saving WAT - they makes the airport a lot closer to a lot of areas that would be consider its service area; but it also makes them a lot closer to DUB. The old N9 was a cart track, the worst national primary in the country.
You sound like a man who has read a lot of newspapers, and we all know the media are very lazy when its comes to reporting on aviation.
While you are right in saying that there are roads at each end of the runway at WAT, there is still a capability of extending the current runway to 1850m x 45m without encroaching on either road.
As EI-A330-300 pointed out, the cost of a runway extension would be significantly less in the current economic climate, not forgetting that the €27.5m capital expenditure was to encompass an entire facility upgrade as well as the runway. €1m would extend the runway now.
Completely and utterly disagree with you on the road argument. WAT provides and cheap, fast and comfortable alternative to ORK and DUB. 500,000 people in WAT's catchment.
Sad day today but I think there will be a new operator in before the start of the summer, all the best to everyone at Waterford Airport.
CP.