Aer Arann Islands (Connemara) has clinched a four-year Public Service Obligation (PSO) contract worth EUR4.9 million euros (USD5.2 million) from the Irish government to provide air services to the Aran Islands off western Ireland.
According to a statement on June 5 by Irish minister for rural and community development, Heather Humphreys, the PSO contract with Galway Aviation Services Ltd. t/a Aer Arann Islands comes into effect on Tuesday, 7 June. It will run until 2026 to ensure essential mainland connectivity for the island communities and will to boost their tourism.
For the first time, the contract ensures the provision of a direct service from the mainland to Inishmaan and Inishmore, which will ensure faster service for those smaller islands. “This contract gives certainly to the communities of Oileáin Árainn. It ensures they can continue to avail of a year-round, reliable and affordable air service to and from Aerfort Chonamara. And for the first time, we will now have direct flights to Inishmaan and Inishmore. This is a fantastic development for these island communities. And it also sends a huge signal out ahead of the summer tourism season," Humphreys said.
The contract will provide 68,274 PSO seats annually to the three islands and will operate from Connemara which was purchased by the State in 2019 for EUR2.75 million (USD2.9 million). The operator has a fleet of three BN-2s to connect the Aran Islands with mainland County Galway, according to its website.
The contract will also see the introduction of a flexible scheduling scheme that will allow the operator to better respond to local service demands, such as island festivals and events. Ad-hoc and scheduled non-PSO flights will also be provided to meet any demand above the agreed PSO seating allocation.
According to Humphreys, the PSO designation for the service had lapsed in 2019. The new contract has brought the air service and route back into European Union (EU) regularity compliance.
In April 2021, the department already had awarded a four-year contract worth EUR5.6 million (USD5.9 million) to Aer Arann Islands to provide daily management services of Connemara Airport and the aerodromes on the three islands.
