To ensure continuity of services on this route when the current Donegal Dublin Air Service PSO contract ends on 25 February, my Department conducted a public procurement process, in line with the requirements of European Union Regulation 1008/2008. This Regulation allows Member State Governments to provide PSO air services to airports serving peripheral or less-developed regions.
The Request for Tenders (RfT) which was published by my Department set out the terms and conditions of the new contract. In line with the Office of Government Procurement standards, the contract includes clauses for Termination as well as Change Control Procedures. The full text of the contract, as set out under the RfT which was determined by my Department in consultation with Donegal Airport, is available via the following Official Journal of the European Union notice.
https://ted.europa.eu/udl?uri=TED:NOTICE:547637-2025:TEXT:EN:HTML
In summary, under the contract, a "Change Control Notice" is required for all change requests, including to changes to the schedule provided for under the contract. This Notice is required to include inter alia, an outline description of the change requested, the rationale for the change, the effect that the change will have on the Services (where known) and an estimate of the effort and cost required to prepare an impact assessment. All Change Control Notices proposing changes to the contract must be submitted for review to the other Party and both parties must indicate their acceptance or rejection of the change request. In other words, a change must be agreed to by both parties to the contract.
While the new contract provides twice daily two way air services, as well as same day return service from both Donegal and Dublin, having listened to the concerns raised by those who are disappointed at the loss of the afternoon service from Donegal Airport, in particular, I am considering what more might be possible to meet the needs of the users of this air service while ensuring the continuity of this vital air service between Donegal and Dublin Airports. In this regard, my Department is engaging with Emerald Airlines and I will be meeting with the Donegal Cancer Flights & Services Group next week.
