The service provided by Air Southwest, flying as Newquay Air from Cork to Belfast, was a widely-welcomed boon to Cork business people. It was welcomed even more by tourism interests in the North.
The one-hour air link between the two cities, especially when peace appeared to have broken out, had the Northern Ireland Tourist Board agog with anticipation. After years of fighting a rearguard action, the board was nearer to operating on a level playing field. A one-hour flight from Cork to Belfast was much more appealing than a car journey of seven hours. But the service ended - and then Omagh happened. For those working so hard in tourism in the North, the scenario looked bleak again.
Now a new Cork-Belfast service is to begin. This time Jersey European Airways will be the operator. The service will begin at the end of this month, allowing the Northern Ireland Tourist Board once again to look south for potential new business. The original service started in February 1996 and stopped last August.
In 1997, the service carried some 7,108 people to the North. This year to August, 4,430 people made the trip, so there is undoubtedly a market available there for Jersey European Airways to corner.
The airline will begin its Cork-Belfast service using 30-seater Shorts aircraft. Mr Declan Breedon, the company's sales and marketing director, is upbeat about the possibilities that lie ahead.