Airport officials warn cabinet ministers that rising fuel costs and “negative passenger sentiment” could cause a drop in passenger numbers at Dublin and Cork airports.
Dublin Airport received international news after more than 1,000 passengers missed their flights due to hour-long queues outside the terminal in recent weeks
Despite the fact that ‘extremely high’ passenger numbers have been seen at Dublin Airport over the past few weeks, long queues and delays as a result could cause a decrease in travelers in the future.
Ministers have been warned negative sentiment could lead to lower activity levels at both Dublin and Cork.
Graeme McQueen, media relations manager at Dublin Airport Authority (DAA), said passenger numbers exceeded all expectations.
“Since March, passenger growth at Dublin Airport has continued to beat forecasts due to extremely high consumer appetite for overseas travel,” he said.
“We estimate that passenger numbers over the summer months are likely to reach around 95% of 2019 levels – a year in which we welcomed a record 33 million passengers.
“On many individual days, passenger numbers have recently exceeded the same day numbers from 2019.”
The DAA received € 37.4 million in wage subsidy support from the state last year, as well as a release of commercial tariffs worth € 34.1 million.
The Cabinet has been warned that the war in Ukraine also poses a threat to the aviation industry, while Covid-19 remains a concern for airport chiefs as new variants emerge.
Inflation will also present “challenges” for the DAA, especially keeping costs low, the government was told.
Cabinet ministers were also told that Cork Airport last year saw a 40-fold reduction in passenger numbers compared to the numbers at the peak of pandemic closures in 2020.
This reduction was due to the closure of the runway at the airport, ministers were allegedly told.
A Cork airport spokesman said it was closed for 10 weeks last September “to facilitate the full reconstruction and rehabilitation of our main jet-suitable runway 16-34”.
“The reconstruction of the runway was the fastest large-scale construction project undertaken in the state in recent years, with significant investment from the DAA and the government,” the spokesman said.
“The reconstruction of the runway was completed on time and within budget.
“Cork Airport reopened at the end of November 2021 and expects to be the first state airport to recover 2019 passenger traffic figures.
“Our initial forecast at the beginning of the year was that Cork Airport would welcome 1.8 million passengers in 2022.
“Due to the increase in demand for international travel and the addition of new routes, this forecast has been revised to 2.1 million passengers.”
Meanwhile, some of the world’s largest airlines have written to Transport Minister Eamon Ryan demanding urgent action to resolve “significant delays” at Dublin Airport.
American, Delta, United and Air Canada have warned the government that the delay crisis is hurting travelers’ impression of Ireland, the airport and the airlines.
The airline group also complained that their premium business class passengers were “forced to join the general queue” at Dublin Airport, although these people paid “substantial sums” to use fast facilities and should be allowed to use them.