The CEO of Ryanair, Michael O'Leary, has blasted the "insane" passenger quota at Dublin Airport and warned that if it is not lifted, Christmas flights may cost more than €1,000.
The Fingal County Council's planning authorization for Dublin Airport now caps the number of passengers it can handle at 32 million annually. With 31.9 million passengers, the airport nearly reached its cap in the previous year. The application procedure to raise the ceiling to 40 million is still underway, although the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) has submitted it.
O'Leary has demanded that Eamon Ryan, the minister of transportation, order DAA to disregard the cap or enact legislation to circumvent the planning procedure. "If we had a Minister for Transport who was modestly interested in aviation or even modestly interested in economic growth and development—which his own aviation policy is at the heart of—he would fix this," the speaker stated in an interview with The Pat Kenny Show on Newstalk.
If the restriction is not raised, O'Leary said, Ryanair could "make a fortune" since one-way tickets would cost up to €500. He went on, "We'll put those 270,000 more seats someplace else; if we can't add them by Christmas, they'll move to Spain, the UK, or Italy. However, roundtrip tickets to and from Dublin this Christmas will cost €1,000, or €500 each way. The era of flag carrier monopolies is returning."
During a March meeting with Minister Ryan, O'Leary suggested tripling Dublin's air traffic in the following six years. He also promised to bring ten to fifteen planes to Dublin, Cork, and Shannon, as well as generate around 7,000 employment in Ireland. He hasn't heard back from anyone yet. "How many of these planes do you want me to place in Dublin, Cork, and Shannon?' I asked Eamon Ryan during our discussion.
In addition, O'Leary attacked Aer Lingus pilots, accusing them of "blackmailing" airlines when they decided to go on strike over a salary disagreement. "I believe that the amount they received from the labor court—roughly 9.5%—is more than reasonable," he stated. The senior captains who earn €250,000 per year make up the majority of those raising the noise here, and it's undoubtedly more than inflation, which is two or three percent."
O'Leary's stern warnings underscore the possibility of substantial fee hikes at Dublin Airport should the passenger cap remain unaddressed. Travelers, the government, and the airline industry are all closely monitoring how things develop, especially as the holidays get near.
