Yesterday's Belfast Telegraph reports that Northern Ireland Employment Minister Sir Reg Empey joined residents of east Belfast in blasting Ryanair for apparently ignoring the deadline for flights in and out of the airport by putting up seats for sale on a number of late night flights.
It appears that it had been possible to book flights on the airlines web site to and from Prestwick on May 13 next year with departure and arrival times outside curfew.
On Thursday, Ryanair said that it was a clerical error that had been corrected. The debacle occurred days after Michael O'Leary's visit to Belfast during which he predicted that the runway extension at the airport would be completed by mid 2010, although no application has yet been lodged with the planning authorities.
Campaigners have been trying for some time to limit expansion at the airport and said that the incident should be a wake up call to Environment Minister Sammy Wilson who recently announced a new planning agreement to allow passenger numbers at the airport rise by half a million a year.
The expansion is subject to the current 6.30am to 9.30pm operating hours and also establishes a method of fining curfew busters and directing the fines into a community fund.
Ryanair said that they have no intention of seeking an extension to the operating hours and no intention of flouting the planning laws in operation at the airport.
Growth at Belfast City is inevitable and the airport is central to Ryanair's growth in the province. In a story that looks like it has lots more mileage before it's finished it would appear that Ryanair and / or the other airlines operating at BHD will have to grasp the nettle sooner or later.
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