Boost for Tubber Airport plans

The prospect of Athlonians flying from Tubber to destinations across Europe and the world has taken a massive leap forward this week after An Bord Pleanala judged the ambitious €200 million international airport plans to be a strategic infrastructure project, a decision that means it can bypass the local planning process and go to the board directly for a verdict. The backers, led by Tullamore-based architect Patrick Little and a group of investors estimate they could create over 5,000 jobs in the airport project, including a further 2,000 in the construction phase of the massive aviation project entailing a 6,000 square metre terminal building with capacity for 2 million passengers, a 2.7 kilometre long and a 60 metre wide runway. Ancillary aviation services including cargo related business, hangars, fire station, control tower and maintenance buildings are also included in the ambitious application along with car parking on the 650 hectare site close to the M6 motorway in the Tubber/Horseleap areas stretching to within a couple of miles from Clara and some 20 kilometres from Athlone. The massive project would cater for both passenger traffic and commercial cargo traffic and would include a rail link to the Dublin/Galway line, the first airport in Ireland to do so. "We hope to be in a position to lodge a planning application with the board, all going well, in around eight months," said Mr Little. It's hoped if planning is successful that work would begin on the airport by the end of 2011, and be operational by the end of 2013. * See full report in this week's Westmeath Independent