As a regional airport, we share the concerns of Mr. Scollan and Mr. Grealis. I do not intend to refer to them again other than to say we support Ireland West, Knock in respect of those matters.
Galway Airport handled 310,000 passengers in 2007, accounting for 21% of passenger traffic in Irish regional airports. The airport is one of the fastest growing in Ireland, growing by 27% from 2006 to 2007. Passenger traffic is dominated by Galway city and county residents, to the level of 64%. Business travellers account for 40% of that figure on our key routes; those visiting friends and relatives make up the remaining 60%. There were 16 scheduled services to destinations in 2007, 13 of which were international and three of which were domestic. The leading scheduled destinations are a mixture of Irish cities, UK cities and tourist destinations such as Lorient, Bordeaux, Faro and Malaga. Galway Airport is forecast to grow in the years to 2030 and it is anticipated that passenger throughput could be at least 800,000 by that year, with the appropriate level of funding. The airport authority has defined an investment strategy to realise the growth potential of the airport. A key part of the strategy is the development of routes to key hub airports serviced by regional airports. As an island nation, access to and from the country is critical. Galway Airport provides for such access through regional airlines to major hub destinations.
The population of the city and county is 231,000, as of the 2006 census. It grew 15% on each occasion in the past two censuses and there is no doubt it will continue to grow.
Regarding supporting economic policy and strategy, the national spatial strategy states Galway, with its population, quality of life attractions, transport connections and capacity to innovate with the support of its third level institutions, will continue to play a critical role that has been essential in activating the potential of the region. The national spatial strategy identified nine gateways to drive that development and the development of the wider regions to achieve the overall objective of more balanced regional development. Galway is one of these gateways and has the potential to support the aspirations of increasing productivity and competitiveness through providing connectivity to the local business base and its ability to combat problems associated with ease of access to international gateways. Galway is a key part of the foreign direct investment toolkit and assists in the creation of the right transport conditions to enable businesses to thrive and local people to compete for jobs on offer in a highly competitive global market.
It is essential in the establishment of a national aviation policy that the role of regional airports is recognised as an important connectivity asset. The development and success of a Galway to Amsterdam route is a clear indicator of this role. The service commenced in May, has proved to be a success and continues to grow.
A recent survey of the Galway to Dublin route in June gives a flavour of the nature of our travellers. Some 41% of trips are business related, 19% are onward connections, which is fundamental to Dublin being a hub, while 53% use the service on occasions for onward connection. In supporting wider benefits, the airport provides links to a number of world cities, including Dublin, London, Manchester, Amsterdam and Edinburgh. While these are significant leisure markets, they are also important business destinations. Consequently, they offer an alternative option to business people travelling to these destinations rather than via other airports. The link to Amsterdam operated by Aer Arann provides access to one of Europe's main hubs and offers significant opportunities for onward connection. Through these and new connections, Galway Airport can offer useful, convenient connections to major European cities.
The perception of international connectivity is key for potential inward investors. As they examine regions in which to locate, Galway Airport ensures this requirement can be fulfilled and that the western region is not immediately removed from consideration. The development of interlining and code-sharing agreements between airlines is key to opening seamless access to major destinations from regional airports with regional carriers. The Aer Arann interline agreement with Etihad Airlines is a key development in this regard.
Galway city and county are recognised for the level of multinational corporations in operation. With a total full-time workforce of 9,500, or 12,500 inclusive of the part-time element, connectivity or connecting these companies with parent companies and markets is essential. Galway Airport continues to recognise the importance of these links and seeks to develop and improve air access for all business in the region.
The growing knowledge sector in the region is a key driver of foreign direct investment. The continued investment in research and development in both NUIG and GMIT will attract the next generation of multinational corporations to the region, as evidenced by the development of the new IDA bio-pharma site at Oranmore. Air access for the continued investment in the region is critical.
Tourism is a major sector in the west, Galway city and county in particular. The total number of tourist visits to the west amounted to 2.819 million in 2007, with total tourist revenue of €817 million. The total number of overseas tourists was 1.25 million, with revenue of €387 million. The role the airport plays in respect of this market is important. Those visiting friends and relatives amount to 60% in respect of key UK routes. The Volvo ocean race in 2009 will further enhance the potential for overseas visitors access to the Galway gateway via Galway Airport. There are 240 full-time employees at the site.
I will now turn to the specific questions that were raised in the letter inviting us to this meeting, beginning with our position on aviation policy. Galway Airport actively supports the development of an aviation policy where the development of regional airports is undertaken to provide air travel for the regions to major European cities and hub airports like Dublin Airport, for onward connections to the world. In doing so, the policy would support the provision of suitable, convenient and frequent services to passengers and businesses in the regions. The objectives as outlined in the Department of Transport's statement of strategy for 2008 to 2010 do not go far enough in this regard.
In 2007 Galway Airport initiated a technical assessment of the infrastructural requirements for future growth and development. This study was supported by Galway city and county councils. The assessment concluded that the existing airport has expansion potential on the present site, with the development of new terminal facilities to the south, with access from the new M6 motorway. The runway would remain at its current length, with minor adjustments to improve operational performance. However, the future extension of the runway is feasible, if required, to drive growth at a later date.
The future growth and development strategy is founded on a consolidation approach to key existing routes and the expansion of routes to key European cities and key hub airports, similar to the recent development of a connection between Galway and Amsterdam, to which I referred earlier. The airport has discussed the marketing of the western region with Fáilte Ireland West and has accepted an invitation to join a sub-committee of the board of Fáilte Ireland West to focus efforts on increasing inbound tourism to the west via air transport through our regional airport.
A question was also raised about proposals to address the imbalance between regional airports and Dublin Airport. Galway Airport is focused on key routes for both business and visitor traffic and on ensuring that both flight frequency and appropriate time-tabling can provide real alternatives to passengers in our catchment area, in particular for those on inward travel to the city and county for business. In the current business environment, where time is a key factor, ease of access to the regional airport, the frequency of key services and a no-hassle approach to using airport facilities are fundamental to our passengers' decisions to travel.
Galway Airport provides its own fuelling facilities and is the licensed operator of same. The provision of fuel at a regional airport is a key requirement for based aircraft operations and for courting new airlines to operate to and from the airport. The recent crisis in the fuel market, with the escalation of fuel costs, has put pressure on the fuelling operation and has had a negative impact on our business. The fuel distributed to Galway Airport is approximately 20% more expensive than fuel distributed in Dublin. Furthermore, sales volumes have declined due to price increases, which has meant that suppliers are unable to give us the same discounts as previously applied. Overall, the imbalance that exists in fuel pricing for Jet A1 and AvGas puts regional airports at a competitive disadvantage when attracting new business.
Galway Airport sees the development of interlining and code sharing agreements between regional airlines and major long haul carriers as being the real opportunity to extend access to long haul travel to the regions. This approach involves the use of key hub airports like Dublin, Manchester and Amsterdam. The development of the interlining agreement between Aer Arann and Etihad offers real alternatives for long haul travel from Galway, via Dublin or Manchester, on to Abu Dhabi and onwards to the Far East and Australasia. The recent developments on interlining between Aer Arann and Aer Lingus on the Cork, Dublin route offers opportunities for long haul travel to the United States of America, although it is our understanding that this service will not be available to passengers on the Galway to Dublin route. We have written to Aer Lingus formally requesting status on this service through Dublin, which in turn supports the hub development of Dublin Airport and further supports the provision of PSO routes from Galway to Dublin for onward travel.