The Minister for Public Enterprise today said she remained confident Aer Lingus would draw up measures to guide it through an expected sector downturn after last Tuesday’s terrorist attacks.
Speaking after addressing the ROUTES International Aviation Conference at Dublin’s Burlington Hotel, Mrs O’Rourke said it was too early to comment on the scale of possible losses facing the company.
Mrs O’Rouke suggested that, contrary to fears over job losses, the extra emphasis on security might mean extra jobs being created - although she said no figures were yet available.
A spokesman for Aer Lingus said the company’s review - which was started six weeks ago - was now being amended to take account of last Tuesday’s attack. All aspects of the company’s operation will be examined before a report is submitted to the board on September 27th.
The Minister said she would meet with the Irish Aviation Authority this afternoon to discuss a range of issues including aviation security.
Earlier, Mrs O'Rourke told the conference the fact that aircraft were used in the attack last Tuesday would have far-reaching implications for the future of aviation safety.
Other airlines - notably fifth-largest US carrier Continental Airlines, responded immediately to an anticipated downturn in air travel by cutting 20 per cent of its flights and 12,000 staff. Company chief executive Mr Gordon Bethune predicted 100,000 airline job losses worldwide.
- Aer Lingus today said all its trans-Atlantic and European flights would operate normally but warned passengers to allow extra time during check-in.
