Time, Sealed and Delivered: The Shannon Airport Group’s Time Capsule sends 2025 into the future to mark 80th Anniversary of Transatlantic Flight
Eighty years after Shannon Airport welcomed the first scheduled transatlantic passenger flight on 24th October 1945, history was made once again – this time underground. The Shannon Airport Group this week sealed a snapshot of life in 2025, along with bold predictions for the future, in a commemorative Time Capsule, now buried on site.
The “Time, Sealed and Delivered” initiative opened for submissions last month, drawing a diverse mix of entries from throughout the community. Schools from Clare, Limerick, Galway and Tipperary sent in imaginative reflections, drawings, and letters – from AI-generated portraits of future selves to predictions about driverless cars and prosthetic technology. Some offered glimpses into daily school life, while others captured the spirit of rural communities, and small local schools.
Travel and how we move through the world today emerged as a powerful thread – a child’s drawing of a smartphone captured its role as today’s essential travel companion, a photo of a cyclist on the Limerick Greenway reflected Ireland’s changing transport landscape, and poetic reflections from some of Shannon’s disability services community offered a moving perspective on the importance of inclusive journeys.
Sustainability was another focus of the contributions. A branded Visit Clare cup celebrated Ireland’s first countywide Certified Sustainable Tourism Destination. The Shannon Airport Group’s own, award-winning conservation grazing project was documented alongside other green initiatives – a reminder that environmental stewardship is central to the region’s identity.
The Time Capsule also reflects Shannon’s distinctive business landscape, with contributions from companies that represent both its legacy and future. EI Electronics – one of the earliest to establish in the Shannon Airport Business Park in 1963 – shared materials that speak to its enduring local presence and global success. Mbryonics, preparing to join the Shannon Airport Business Park, offered a message about its mission to deliver the internet in space, capturing the spirit of cutting-edge Irish innovation. Future Mobility Campus Ireland (FMCI) shared a message about its work in next-generation mobility and infrastructure, expressing hope that today’s innovations will shape tomorrow’s reality.
The Shannon Airport Group’s own contribution offers a detailed snapshot of the organisation in 2025, including a staff photo, key statistics such as passenger numbers, routes and carbon emissions, and airport ground plans that may look very different in 80 years’ time.
Ray O’Driscoll, Interim CEO of The Shannon Airport Group, said: “This Time Capsule isn’t just about honouring where we’ve come from – it’s about sharing who we are today with the future. Since that first scheduled transatlantic passenger flight in 1945, Shannon Airport has grown into a place of global significance and local pride. From welcoming over two million passengers a year to pioneering world-firsts like Duty Free shopping and US Preclearance, Shannon has consistently led the way in aviation, innovation and accessibility. As we mark eighty years of progress, it’s exciting to imagine where we’ll be in another eighty. By preserving a snapshot of life today, we’re giving future generations the chance to look back, reflect, and see just how far we’ve come.”
The capsule was sealed today at Shannon Airport and will remain buried on airport grounds until 2105 – 80 years from now, and what will be the 160th anniversary of that first transatlantic flight.
