Michael O'Leary reaffirmed his earlier commitment of handing control of the Heathrow slots to Government in the event of a successful bid and also said that the current Aer Lingus management structure would remain in place. Ryanair also forecast that passenger numbers in Aer Lingus would grow to 18m in five years.
Aer Lingus were told at the meeting that unless the Shannon - Heathrow slots were reestablished that there would be considerable support among TDs for Ryanair's bid, adding that there was considerable anger still present in the mid west as a result of the pull out.
Meanwhile in the Dail this afternoon, the Fine Gael deputy spokesman on Foreign Affairs and TD for Clare, Pat Breen was ruled out of order by the Ceann Comhairle (Speaker) when he tried to raise the importance of reinstating the Heathrow slots at Shannon. Recalling the fact that Element Six in Shannon had recently cited the loss of the Heathrow slots as being a direct contributory factor in the company's decision to lay off 150 employees, Deputy Breen said that "The reinstatement of a Shannon Heathrow Service is essential" if the region is to face up to the economic challenges which it now faces.
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