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Bosses have 90 days to save crisis-hit Prestwick Airport
BOSSES have 90 days to come up with an action plan to save crisis-hit Prestwick Airport.
Documents obtained by the Record show the business is in financial turmoil.
Hundreds of jobs could be at risk and there are fears that cost-cutting might leave the airport open to terror attacks Business has suffered since Ryanair scrapped plans to expand the number of routes from Prestwick.
The airport has also been hit badly by a slump in passengers caused by the credit crunch.
A source said: "The chief executive Mark Rodwell spoke to all staff last week and told us in no uncertain terms that the business was in crisis and that there would need to be big changes.
"He basically said that Prestwick was going down the tubes and that if it couldn't be sorted out in a few months, people would have to be laid off.
"Morale is at an all-time low and the biggest fear is that cutbacks will leave us vulnerable to a terror attack just as Glasgow Airport is beefing up its security."
A confidential briefing letter from Rodwell revealed:
Staff are being urged to take unpaid leave.
Overtime pay has been cancelled.
A recruitment freeze has been imposed.
Redundancies are being considered.
Staff will be asked to redeploy to other departments when there are shortages.
In his letter to staff, Rodwell wrote: "The management have begun a full review of the business.
"All areas of the business will be looked at, which in turn will involve change.
"Our main objective is to protect our overall financial performance through cost reductions.
"We aim to minimise the need for redundancies. However, it is likely that there will be changes to terms and conditions."
Jim Winter of the airport workers' union UNITE, said: "We have met the company and they are going to carry out a 90-day review of business.
"I will be working closely with the company to try to make sure there is no need for compulsory redundancies."
Prestwick, whose slogan is Pure Dead Brilliant, has experienced a meteoric rise over the last 15 years and now employs 500 people.
In 1993, just 10,000 passengers passed through the Ayrshire airport's doors and the site's future was in doubt.
But when Ryanair arrived on the scene in 1994, it led to massive growth, culminating in passenger figures of 2.5million in 2007.
Ryanair recently scrapped plans to operate new routes from the airport, choosing to expand in Edinburgh instead.
The airport was also hit badly when Seguro Holidays, who used Prestwick as a base, went bust last September, wiping out a massive chunk of income overnight.
Another hammer blow came when FedEx transferred their freight operations from Prestwick to Stansted Airport, outside London.
The source added: "Just a year ago, business was booming. The place was mobbed. But a catalogue of disasters have now put us in a terrible position.
"The flights that we still have are going out half-empty because the weak pound is making Europe so expensive and the smaller winter schedules are now kicking in."
In a statement yesterday, Rodwell said: "We have entered into a review process to look for ways to deliver efficiencies, cost savings and revenue improvements.
"Our business development team is working hard to offset the recent loss of freight and charter traffic by exploring a number of opportunities with potential new airlines.
"While these are difficult times, we are optimistic about the long-term future of the airport."
Local Tory MSP John Scott said: "There is no doubt that Prestwick Airport is suffering the effects of the economic downturn and that this has hit passenger numbers and therefore the airport's overall operations.
"Nevertheless, I am reassured by my discussions with the airport that there is a determination to explore all possible avenues in an effort to minimise any job losses and to secure the long-term future of the airport and its workforce."
Source
BOSSES have 90 days to come up with an action plan to save crisis-hit Prestwick Airport.
Documents obtained by the Record show the business is in financial turmoil.
Hundreds of jobs could be at risk and there are fears that cost-cutting might leave the airport open to terror attacks Business has suffered since Ryanair scrapped plans to expand the number of routes from Prestwick.
The airport has also been hit badly by a slump in passengers caused by the credit crunch.
A source said: "The chief executive Mark Rodwell spoke to all staff last week and told us in no uncertain terms that the business was in crisis and that there would need to be big changes.
"He basically said that Prestwick was going down the tubes and that if it couldn't be sorted out in a few months, people would have to be laid off.
"Morale is at an all-time low and the biggest fear is that cutbacks will leave us vulnerable to a terror attack just as Glasgow Airport is beefing up its security."
A confidential briefing letter from Rodwell revealed:
Staff are being urged to take unpaid leave.
Overtime pay has been cancelled.
A recruitment freeze has been imposed.
Redundancies are being considered.
Staff will be asked to redeploy to other departments when there are shortages.
In his letter to staff, Rodwell wrote: "The management have begun a full review of the business.
"All areas of the business will be looked at, which in turn will involve change.
"Our main objective is to protect our overall financial performance through cost reductions.
"We aim to minimise the need for redundancies. However, it is likely that there will be changes to terms and conditions."
Jim Winter of the airport workers' union UNITE, said: "We have met the company and they are going to carry out a 90-day review of business.
"I will be working closely with the company to try to make sure there is no need for compulsory redundancies."
Prestwick, whose slogan is Pure Dead Brilliant, has experienced a meteoric rise over the last 15 years and now employs 500 people.
In 1993, just 10,000 passengers passed through the Ayrshire airport's doors and the site's future was in doubt.
But when Ryanair arrived on the scene in 1994, it led to massive growth, culminating in passenger figures of 2.5million in 2007.
Ryanair recently scrapped plans to operate new routes from the airport, choosing to expand in Edinburgh instead.
The airport was also hit badly when Seguro Holidays, who used Prestwick as a base, went bust last September, wiping out a massive chunk of income overnight.
Another hammer blow came when FedEx transferred their freight operations from Prestwick to Stansted Airport, outside London.
The source added: "Just a year ago, business was booming. The place was mobbed. But a catalogue of disasters have now put us in a terrible position.
"The flights that we still have are going out half-empty because the weak pound is making Europe so expensive and the smaller winter schedules are now kicking in."
In a statement yesterday, Rodwell said: "We have entered into a review process to look for ways to deliver efficiencies, cost savings and revenue improvements.
"Our business development team is working hard to offset the recent loss of freight and charter traffic by exploring a number of opportunities with potential new airlines.
"While these are difficult times, we are optimistic about the long-term future of the airport."
Local Tory MSP John Scott said: "There is no doubt that Prestwick Airport is suffering the effects of the economic downturn and that this has hit passenger numbers and therefore the airport's overall operations.
"Nevertheless, I am reassured by my discussions with the airport that there is a determination to explore all possible avenues in an effort to minimise any job losses and to secure the long-term future of the airport and its workforce."
Source
