Lynne Embleton, CEO of Aer Lingus, has criticised the authorities and Dublin airport for asking the airline to curtail ad-hoc flights to comply with a 32m passenger cap.
Embleton believes this limitation is unacceptable. “This is a national interest issue, in terms of what aviation brings for jobs, the economy and FDI. The airport spent €320m on a new runway and we’re not able to fly as much as we should be able to fly with that. It’s not proving a good investment right now.”
Dublin Airport continues to market itself and attract new routes and airlines, despite requesting Aer Lingus to reduce ad-hoc services.
Ad-hoc flights, including special sports events and the Aer Lingus College Football Classic, make up about 2% of the airline’s normal operations at Dublin Airport.
The DAA (Dublin Airport Authority) plans to submit an application to raise the passenger cap to 40m. Discussions are ongoing with airlines to ensure compliance and prevent breaches of the current cap.
Aer Lingus may consider its Manchester base as an option for growth if it cannot expand its operations out of Dublin. The Manchester base has been profitable since its launch in 2021, offering direct services to the US and Caribbean.
