Knock International Airport has reported a 55% increase in passenger numbers for the nine months to the end of September.
Overall passenger numbers grew to 287,000 from January to September, up from 185,000 during the same time last year. Charter passenger numbers almost doubled from 26,000 in 2003 to 51,000 in 2004.
Last June, the airport submitted a €41m investment programme plan to the Government as part of the lead-up to the second round of the National Development Fund 2005-2006.
Knock operates daily flights to and from Dublin, London Stansted, Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool. It also operates flights to Lourdes, Medjugorje and Fatima, summer charter flights to Spain, Portugal and Cyprus, autumn charter flights to Cape Town in South Africa and winter ski packages to Andorra.
'Knock airport is capable for growing much more and achieving one million passengers by 2008,' commented the airport's CEO Liam Scollan.
