The High Court has temporarily paused a passenger cap at Dublin Airport, which was set to limit numbers to 25.2m from late March to October 2025, amid concerns from airlines about the impact on their take-off and landing slots.
Major carriers, including Aer Lingus and Ryanair, argued that the cap would significantly harm their operations by risking their “use them or lose them” take-off slots, with the ruling coming just before summer slot allocations were to be made.
The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) imposed the cap based on various operational and planning constraints, including a 32m passenger limit established in 2007, but airlines contested that this limit should not influence current assessments of capacity.
Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) opposed the pause, claiming it would lead to breaches of planning conditions and potential enforcement actions, while also seeking permission to increase the passenger cap to 40m.
Justice Barry O’Donnell said airlines would suffer immediate serious consequences if I refused to pause the operation and implementation of the IAA decision. The potential consequences of a potential breach of the planning conditions did not outweigh the “highly probable and very serious adverse consequences”
A written statement from Minister of Transport Eamon Ryan shared: “We welcome the decision of the High Court today granting a partial stay on the Irish Aviation Authority’s decision concerning slots at Dublin Airport for the summer 2024 scheduling season. It gives some much-needed clarity at this stage and reflects the desire for progress expressed by the vast majority of stakeholders who have been engaged with on the issue. We look forward to working again with all stakeholders in the time ahead, as we work towards a solution that respects the planning process while continuing to promote the air connectivity of Ireland to the world.”
Minister James Lawless shared: I welcome the High Court decision today to stay the Dublin airport cap pending further consideration. It allows space for the planning authorities to process Dublin Airport application to lift the cap permanently – which should now be progressed without any further delay. Whilst this is a highly complex planning and legal issue, the vast majority of stakeholders I engaged with desired progress and an avoidance of negative economic impacts. National aviation policy is to grow connections across the island, including at Dublin airport.
A written statement from DAA shared: “The court had a difficult task in considering complex issues of domestic planning law, EU law and international treaties, which have competing interests. Today’s decision will be welcomed by aviation as it brings clarity and allows all parties to move forward and protects jobs and connectivity which is in everyone’s interest. We are now reviewing the detail of the decision to understand the exact implications for next year.
“The planning cap remains a significant issue for Ireland, and it is essential the planning regime now moves quickly to fully resolve the issue for the long term. We’re an island nation dependent on aviation for our prosperity and we need to maintain good connectivity. It is in everyone’s interest that we deliver an uplift to the planning cap quickly, so we don’t find ourselves back in this position in a year’s time.”
A written statement from Ryanair’s CEO Michael O’Leary shared: “It is deeply regrettable that the airlines had to take legal action to stay the idiotic cap at Dublin Airport solely because Transport Minister, Eamon Ryan, wouldn’t do his job and issue a letter to the IAA. The Dublin Airport cap is in breach of EU law and any competent Transport Minister (not to mention Tourism Minister, Catherine Martin) would have acted to scrap this outdated and damaging cap.
Today’s High Court ruling clears the way for this matter to be referred to the European Courts where Ryanair is confident that this absurd road traffic restriction from 2007 will be removed, which will enable airlines like Ryanair to continue to grow traffic, tourism, and jobs in Ireland, where two Green Ministers (Eamon Ryan and Catherine Martin) have failed to act for the last 5 years.
We hope the forthcoming Election will remove the deadhanded Green Party incompetence from Irish tourism and aviation so that Ryanair can return to growing at Dublin Airport instead of sending growth to Belfast, Italy and Poland.”
