James Horan (monsignor)

Horan was troubled by the struggles of daily life and mass emigration in the west of Ireland and he worked to improve the living standards of the local community.

The day after the papal visit, Horan began his campaign to build an international airport in Barnacuige, a small village near Charlestown, County Mayo.

[2] Critics regarded the idea of an airport on a "foggy, boggy site" in Mayo as unrealistic, but funding was approved by the then Taoiseach, Charles Haughey, who performed the official opening in May 1986, five years after work commenced.

This large lottery succeeded in raising the required revenue, but only after a painstaking tour of several countries, including Australia and the United States.

His life and work were chronicled in a musical written by Terry Reilly and local broadcaster Tommy Marren, entitled A Wing and a Prayer.