Dublin Airport – global airlines threaten to pull flights in row over passenger cap

The powerful US industry group Airlines for America (A4A) is among those piling pressure on planners to rapidly approve an increase in the passenger cap from 32 million to 40 million annually.

It said the cap on passenger numbers must be lifted “if Ireland is to sustain and grow current levels of US tourism and foreign direct investment”.

“Three US companies – Apple, Microsoft and Google – are responsible for one-third of Ireland’s corporation tax,” it said in a submission to Fingal County Council. “Failure to cater to US-Ireland passenger demand will have a significant negative impact on the Irish economy.”

A4A’s members include American Airlines, United, Delta, FedEx and UPS, which are among the world’s largest passenger and cargo carriers.

The group’s warning that the entire Irish economy is on the line is echoed by multiple airlines and business lobbies ahead of the update, due shortly from Fingal planners, on their assessment of DAA’s application.

IAG cannot stress enough the urgency for Fingal County Council to make a decision to increase the passenger cap

As well as seeking to raise passenger numbers by 25pc, the daa wants permission to build extensive new facilities to accommodate the increase.

Kenny Jacobs, DAA chief executive, has said the restrictions are holding back the growth of the airport and businesses reliant on it.

However, the claims by airlines that they would not only have to forego growth but would have difficulty maintaining existing services in Ireland will cause alarm across the industry.

British Airways said even a delay in raising the cap posed “significant risks to the Irish economy”.

It warned: “The lack of certainty over the cap makes it challenging to forecast effectively and may compel British Airways to focus on other destinations or airports.”

That message is underlined in a submission by British Airways parent company, IAG, which also owns Aer Lingus, Vueling and Iberia Express.

“IAG cannot stress enough the urgency for Fingal County Council to make a decision to increase the passenger cap,” it said.

It said all IAG carriers may have to turn their attention to other airports.

Separately, Aer Lingus pointed out that it employs over 5,000 workers, most of them at Dublin Airport, and had made “significant investments” in expanding its fleet, with new aircraft due for delivery this year and next year.

“These investments were made on the basis that the resulting growth would be accommodated at Dublin Airport,” it said.

Spanish operator Vueling added that lifting the cap was “essential for maintaining and developing global routes”.

If the current passenger cap is kept, it could lead to airlines such as ourselves choosing other airports over Dublin

Emirates stressed its purchase of Irish products and its employment of more than 200 Irish cabin crew with significant additional recruitment under way.

“Without the increase in passenger numbers to 40m, we are unable to grow our business and may need to look at other destinations or airports as a more viable option,” it said.

SAS Scandinavian Airlines cautioned: “If the current passenger cap is kept, it could lead to airlines such as ourselves choosing other airports over Dublin.”

SunExpress, an expanding Turkish airline, said: “We would be forced to grow at airports other than Dublin Airport, resulting in a decrease of our offer at Dublin Airport,” it said.

Canadian airline Air Transat said the airport expansion was essential to provide greater flexibility in scheduling.

“This flexibility can be a key factor in making investment decisions,” it warned.

Etihad, JetBlue, Egyptair, WestJet, Aegean Airlines, HiSky, Aurigny and Emerald Airlines have also made submissions stressing the importance of allowing the airport grow to accommodate their expansion plans.

Ryanair, Dublin Airport’s largest user, said it intended increasing passenger numbers by 76pc over the next 10 years and said Dublin would have to expand to secure a portion of that growth.

Airlines for America signalled similar growth prospects.

“The number of passengers travelling between the United States and Ireland grew by 76pc between 2013 and 2023, representing an average annual growth rate of 5.8pc,” it said.

“A4A is anticipating a similar annual increase in US-Ireland passenger traffic in the coming years.”

The scale of anticipated growth across the sector has prompted hundreds of submissions to planners pleading for the expansion to be refused.

Residents living beneath flight paths say they are plagued by noise from overhead aircraft and cannot cope with more.

Environmental campaigners say that to allow an already energy-intensive, high-emission business to expand further would make nonsense of the country’s climate action promises and emission-reduction obligations.

The pro-expansion side repeatedly cites the National Aviation Policy, which targets Dublin Airport for growth.

However, the same policy says repeatedly that such growth must be sustainable, which opposing groups say it will not be.

The clash calls attention to a discussion not yet had in the Government or industry in this country about what level of economic expansion is compatible with or responsible in a climate crisis.

Industry groupings such as IBEC and the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation have signed up to climate action pledges, but are pushing for the airport expansion.

An update is due from Fingal County Council by Monday, but it is expected planners will look for more time and/or further information before reaching a final decision.

The DAA’s planning application runs to over 7,000 pages, and more than 370 submissions have been received from individuals, residents’ groups, politicians, airlines, companies and tourism, export and general business associations.

The council said: “An initial decision on the application is due later this month.”