Paudge Connolly
Question:256 Mr. Connolly asked the Minister for Transport the extent to which upgrading the Aer Lingus fleet will be subsidised by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20583/04]
View answerWednesday, 7 July 2004
Questions (259)
Written answers
Last October, I approved a proposal from Aer Lingus to upgrade and standardise its European fleet. This will see the airline transition to a single short-fleet aircraft for its European operations with the acquisition of 17 Airbus A320 aircraft.
The new aircraft will be on stream by 2005, maintaining the short-haul fleet at 27 but with increased capacity and operational flexibility arising from the larger aircraft and lower unit costs. The overall transaction involves the sale of some existing aircraft. I should point out that this investment is being funded from internal resources within the company with no recourse to the Exchequer.
In addition, the company has commenced a review of its long-haul fleet which is expected to be completed by autumn 2004. It would be unwise for me to speculate on the outcome of that review at this stage. However, early indications are that the company will need access to equity to fund the investment.