Ireland’s two busiest airports – Dublin Airport and Cork Airport – welcomed almost 35 million passengers in 2023, according to new figures released today by daa, the operator of both airports.
A total of 31.9 million passengers passed through the terminals of Dublin Airport in 2023, in compliance with the 32 million terminals cap.
The busiest day of the year at Dublin Airport, and indeed in the history of the airport, was Sunday, July 30 when 121,000 passengers travelled through the airport. In total, there were 241,595 flight movements at Dublin Airport during 2023.
Figures from operator daa also confirmed that Cork Airport enjoyed the busiest year in its 62-year history for international passenger traffic, with 2.8 million passengers travelling through in 2023 – which represented a 25% increase on 2022 levels, which saw 2.24 million passengers.
Kenny Jacobs, CEO of daa, said: “2023 was a very solid year for both Dublin Airport and Cork Airport as our hard-working teams ensured a consistently smooth and positive experience for all passengers who travelled through both airports.
“It was a year full of highlights at Dublin Airport, from the arrival of US President Joe Biden and Air Force One in April to the departure and arrival home of the Irish women’s football team and the men’s rugby team to and from their respective World Cups during the summer.”
Regarding the 32 million passenger cap at Dublin Airport and the opportunity for growth, Mr Jacobs said:
“Passenger numbers at Dublin Airport are now 60% higher than they were a decade ago and there is strong demand for further growth, which would continue to bring new jobs and economic growth to Ireland. As it stands, Dublin Airport has room to grow and could comfortably accommodate 35 million passengers per annum with the current infrastructure, but we now face a period of stalled growth as we continue to adhere to the annual terminals cap of 32 million passengers.
“Existing airline customers want to grow at Dublin and new airline customers want to start flying to and from Dublin. The airline and passenger demand is there, Ireland will lose out to other uncapped hub airports with potential new jobs and new connectivity being be lost until Dublin Airport is allowed to operate to a higher capacity.
“Dublin Airport last year submitted an Infrastructure Application to Fingal County Council which, if approved, would enable us to take up these growth opportunities for Ireland Inc and increase passenger numbers to 40 million per annum, which would result in more jobs being created and further economic growth. Until this application is approved, Dublin Airport’s terminals will remain capped at 32 million passengers and Ireland will continue to wave goodbye to good jobs and economic growth,” added Jacobs.
