Cancer care campaigners from Donegal are travelling to Dublin tomorrow to formally hand over a petition signed by more than 15,000 people calling for the protection of the Donegal–Dublin Public Service Obligation air service.
The committee from Donegal Cancer Flights and Services who organised the petition will also be seeking direct engagement with the Minister for Transport Darragh O’Brien TD and government representatives to ensure that the Donegal–Dublin PSO explicitly protects same-day return travel for medical purposes.
The group are concerned for the impact, especially for cancer patients and essential medical appointments.
They said that proposed change to the current timetable risk making same-day medical travel impractical, forcing patients into overnight stays, extra cost and unnecessary strain.
“We are asking for clarity, accountability, and above all, a commitment that cancer patients will not be collateral damage of administrative or contractual decisions,” a statement from Donegal Cancer Flights and Services read.
“This is about fairness. It is about equality of access. And it is about listening to those who know this route not as a timetable, but as a lifeline.”
Since the news emerged last week, it has been met with uproar from the West Donegal community. Large crowds attended a protest outside Donegal Airport on Saturday in response to proposed timetable changes.
Donegal Cancer Flights and Services explained that the petition represents not just numbers, but lived reality for cancer patients across Donegal.
“For cancer patients in Donegal, the midday PSO flight is not a convenience or a luxury, it is a medical lifeline. It allows patients to attend hospital appointments, consultations, treatments and assessments in Dublin and return home the same day, sparing them the physical, emotional and financial toll of unnecessary overnight stays while already undergoing serious illness.”
Donegal Cancer Flights and Services operate on the front line of this reality. The committee works directly with cancer patients and families at their most vulnerable moments, helping them travel for urgent care.
“We see first-hand the strain placed on patients when same-day travel is removed or made unworkable. Any PSO arrangement that fails to safeguard same-day medical access fundamentally undermines the purpose of a Public Service Obligation route.”
The scale of public support, with over 15,000 signatories and rising, sends a clear and urgent message, that the people of Donegal will not accept the erosion of a service that protects the health, dignity and wellbeing of cancer patients.
“Geographic isolation must never translate into reduced access to life-saving care.”
Sign the petition here.
