Kerry Airport is back in profit just one year after weathering the pandemic storm.

The board of directors released its Annual Report and Accounts up to December 31 at its Annual General Meeting this week.

The airport confirmed an operating profit, after taxation, of €2,439,515 which compares most favourably with the after taxation operating loss of €144,996 in the previous year.

The airport’s board said gross revenue in 2021 reflects the recovery in passenger numbers from a low of 82,959 in 2020 to 115,398 in 2021, complemented by a growth in the corporate and the general aviation sector during the period.

“Recovery is underway in 2022 and better days are ahead for Kerry Airport. By no means will we reach the levels of activity we enjoyed in 2019 this year, but certainly we can proclaim with much conviction that the doldrums of the past two years are, for now, behind us,” John Mulhern, CEO of Kerry Airport, said.

“The coming years will require extraordinary enterprise to survive the financial insult of this pandemic. Be assured we will work tirelessly to return to the success we enjoyed and then to further growth. Kerry Airport is requisite to the entire region’s revival.”

Killarney Chamber of Tourism and Commerce welcomed the news.

“For everybody involved in Kerry tourism – the lifeblood of the county – it is very heartening to learn that there is great confidence that the upward trend will continue and that passenger numbers in 2022 will increase significantly,” said Chamber President, Niall Kelleher.

“For Kerry to prosper as a top tourist destination we need Kerry Airport to be successful and Killarney Chamber will certainly do everything in its power to promote and enhance this wonderful facility right on our doorstep.”

He added that huge credit is due to the airport’s chief executive officer, John Mulhern, the board of directors and the staff for the great resilience and remarkable dedication they displayed during a very difficult period.