Dublin Airport flights nightmare as planes circle over Knock after air traffic control malfunction

 

Due to a lack of air traffic controllers (ATCs), there were minor inconveniences for hundreds of passengers landing in Ireland on Monday and Tuesday.

Due to a shortage of Air Traffic Controllers (ATCs) to ensure safe flight coordination, Dublin's airspace was restricted twice on Monday, leaving seven flights into the airport in a holding pattern over Knock Airport.

Between Monday night and Tuesday morning, there were three arrival shutdowns totaling ninety minutes.

Because of the 30-minute shutdowns at 2 and 4 am, transatlantic flights that were scheduled to land in Dublin were instructed to circle over Knock, County Mayo, for as long as 40 minutes.

Galway Beo was informed by an official of Airnav, the statutory organization in charge of air traffic control in Irish airspace:

"Due to a convergence of a number of events including mandatory safety training for Air Traffic Controllers, training for student Air Traffic Controllers and short notice illness absences, a total of three short and limited restrictions (over 30 minutes each) was put on arrivals to Dublin airport."

"The type of restriction implemented in Dublin airspace is commonplace across Europe to manage capacity and prioritise the safety of operations."

According to the operator of the airport, 2.9 million passengers entered and exited Dublin Airport's two terminals in September, an 11% increase over the same month in 2022.

Thanks to a busy September, Dublin Airport handled just over 12 million passengers starting or ending their journeys throughout the summer's four busiest months, June through September.

Meanwhile, from January to June 2023, Knock Airport saw a record-breaking 367,000 passengers, making it the busiest six-month period in the airport's 38-year history.

The number of passengers was 1% more than the busiest six-month period in 2019 and represented a 24% rise over the same time in 2022.

During the first half of the year, over 300,000 passengers went between Ireland and the UK, a rise of 18% over 2022 statistics and 7% over the previous busiest six-month period in 2019.

While Ryanair increased capacity on flights to Edinburgh, Bristol, Liverpool, Manchester, and Birmingham for the summer, the airport welcomed a new route to London Heathrow with Aer Lingus in March.

Soon, the airport will introduce cutting-edge new security systems that will streamline the procedure and expedite passenger flow.

People getting held up at security because they forgot their toothpaste or sunscreen needs to be in a clear plastic bag is a familiar scene in airports all around the world.

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