5000 new Ryanair jobs announced is a very welcome start to the reopening of the aviation sector – Doherty

The announcement by Ryanair to create 5000 new jobs at the opening of the €50 million Aviation Training Centre in Santry close to Dublin Airport, is a very welcome development at this crucial time for the aviation sector, Fine Gael Senator in Dublin Fingal, Regina Doherty, has said.

The Leader of Seanad Éireann, Senator Doherty, has welcomed the 5,000 new pilot and cabin crew jobs which are to be created over the next 5 years as Ryanair and the aviation sector returns to full growth.

“Today’s announcement comes as welcome news to a sector that has suffered immensely from the pandemic where restrictions have limited and ceased air travel. It comes at a time when restrictions are to be lifted at the end of October along with the success of the vaccine rollout where over 90% of people are fully vaccinated, therefore allowing more and more people to fly in and out of the country on holidays or work trips abroad.

“145,000 people rely on the aviation industry for employment in this country and these extra 5000 jobs will not only benefit the lucky recipients, but also the wider economy around our aviation sector.

‘’The new Airline Flight Academy (AFA) Centre opened yesterday in Santry was attended by my party Leader, An Tánaiste Leo Varadkar and contains a state of the art cabin crew training and emergency evacuation device, as well as a specialist cabin fire training centre. This clearly shows that Ireland is leading the way in the future of aviation technology.

‘’The opening of this €50 million centre is exactly the boost that the sector needs as we emerge from the uncertainty of Covid.

‘’Our economy benefits greatly from international connectivity and Ryanair intends to grow to carry 200 million passengers annually with the extra 5000 highly trained personnel that are to be introduced by 2025.

‘’Since the beginning of the pandemic I have been liaising with aviation industry stakeholders to do with the reopening of the sector, antigen testing and financial supports for this vital sector not only for Fingal but the whole country”, Senator Regina Doherty concluded.