LISTEN: Keith Glatz of A4A on Dublin airport passenger cap

Keith Gatz of Airlines for America has told interviewer Ciara Kelly of Newstalk that the organisation filed a complaint with the US Department of Transportation because time is running out to prevent disruption to transatlantic services. American Airlines initiated the complaint last week over Dublin Airport’s passenger cap. Airlines for America has worked with the Irish government for nearly two years and secured commitments to remove the cap, but those commitments require action.

A 2007 planning condition limits development at the airport despite changes in how passengers reach it. This condition holds back a key piece of economic infrastructure.

The cap remains stayed and non-enforceable through an injunction, yet uncertainty prevents airlines from adding flights. Schedules are planned over a year in advance, and without a clear regime for the winter and summer seasons, further services become commercially unviable. The organisation seeks a transparent plan with timelines rather than aspirational goals.

The Irish government has indicated that legislation will be introduced with heads of a bill in the coming months and resolution by the end of the year. Airlines for America views these assurances as repeated over two years without concrete steps. The group calls for the government to accelerate legislation, possibly by treating the matter as an emergency or designating Dublin Airport a national strategic asset.

Airlines for America wants the cap removed as soon as possible to avoid harm to Irish citizens through lost tourism business, connectivity, and economic activity. The organisation does not prescribe specific consequences but asks the US government to address discrimination or unreasonable restrictions under the relevant agreement. If resolved, US airlines aim to increase flights to Ireland, building on post-COVID growth of 60 to 70 percent in passengers to Dublin and expanding its role as a transit hub to Europe.

Keith Gatz shared: “We filed because time is running out, right? And we want to prevent what is an avoidable disruption and services on the Transatlantic.” “We cannot continue to live in a world of uncertainty that is forcing us to make adverse scheduling decisions for the passengers in the marketplace.” “We are just looking for a clear, transparent plan to get from all of the talk to some of the action. And even today, at the outline that you just presented. There are no hard lines, no timelines. It’s just an aspirational goal.”