Mr. Noel Treacy T.D., Minister for Science, Technology and Commerce today (Friday 12th March 1999) announced that START AMADEUS GmbH, a subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG, one of the world's largest airlines, is to establish a Software Development Centre in Galway. The new Centre - START AMADEUS Limited - is supported by IDA Ireland. It will create 100 new jobs over the next three years and due to the highly technical nature of the work those employed will be graduate software engineers.

"This is great news for Galway today and I am delighted to making this announcement. Clearly Galway has the skills base to support such a company as START AMADEUS Ltd which is part of a vibrant sector. I would like to welcome the company here and wish them every success, said Minister Treacy.

START AMADEUS Ltd will have part of the responsibility for the information technology (IT) activities of the Lufthansa Group. Its activities will include core software development, software testing, redesign of legacy systems and the customisation of products and systems for the Group. The General Manager is Galway man, Mr. Gregory Cawley. Recruited in Switzerland, where he worked for a number of years, Mr. Cawley was keen to return to his native County. General recruitment is also underway and already 14 people have been employed.

The new Centre will be located at the IDA Business Park, Newcastle, Galway, where START AMADEUS will have a joint share of a new 3,250 square metre (35,000 sq. ft.) building. The building is currently under construction by DER Ireland Limited, a subsidiary of Deutsches Reiseburo Frankfurt, for its new shared services and teleservicing operation which was announced for Galway in 1997. It will create 175 new jobs over three years and has recruited 29 people.

Deutsches Reiseburo Frankfurt is Germany's largest travel agency chain and third largest tour operator and is owned by Deutsche Bahn, the German railway.

START AMADEUS GmbH was established in Frankfurt in 1971 to develop computer reservation systems for the airline industry in Germany. It has developed a close strategic alliance with AMADEUS, the world's largest computer reservation system. START AMADEUS now offers a comprehensive range of computerised reservation products and its clients include airlines, hotels, car rental firms, ferry companies, event organisers, cruises and rail, bus and tour operators. Employing 700 people and with an annual turnover of IR£168 million, it has a network system with the largest number of computer links in Germany.

Deutsche Lufthansa AG is one of the world's largest airlines. It employs 58,000 people in the airline, travel and tour operations and cargo, technical and catering services. It has a number of other operations in Ireland.

In Dublin, Lufthansa Airlines established a Reservation Centre in 1997 to service its own European requirements in the first instance and then those of some of its alliance partners. It has already grown to employ 200 people.

At Rathcoole, Co. Dublin, Airmotive Ireland, in which Lufthansa Technik has a majority shareholding, employs 475 people in the maintenance of jet engines.

It has two operations in Shannon, Co. Clare - Shannon Aerospace Ltd, a joint venture with Swissair, employs 650 people carrying out heavy airframe maintenance and Lufthansa Shannon Turbine Technologies, a wholly owned subsidiary, employs 100 people and specialises in jet engine component repair.