Knock Airport predicts busiest ever year

Number of passengers using the airport reached 665,000 last year

A Ryanair flight takes off from Knock Airport in Co Mayo. Photo: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times
A Ryanair flight takes off from Knock Airport in Co Mayo. Photo: Dara Mac Dónaill/The Irish Times

Knock Airport is predicting this year will be its busiest ever year, with passenger numbers expected to exceed 700,000 for the first time.

The annual number of passengers using Ireland West Knock reached 665,000 last year - the second highest traffic figures at the airport since it opened in 1986.

The Gathering tourism promotion provided a major boost for passenger numbers in 2013, according to the airport, particularly from key markets in the UK, Italy and Germany.

There was a 7 per cent increase in traffic on London services, a 28 per cent increase in traffic from the German market on Lufthansa’s Dusseldorf service and a 23 per cent increase in traffic from the Italian market on Ryanair’s Milan service.

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New destinations for 2014 include a new twice weekly service from Eindhoven in Holland which commences at the beginning of April. In addition Ryanair will commence new direct services, three times weekly, to Glasgow, from June.

"We are looking forward to the year ahead being the busiest year in the airports history with four new services being launched, extra capacity on our key London services and the Wild Atlantic Way project getting underway," airport managing director Joe Gilmore said.