The Advocate General of the Court of Justice of the European Union has issued an opinion confirming that the Irish Aviation Authority acted appropriately in factoring the passenger cap into capacity decisions at Dublin Airport.
The opinion further indicated that enforcement of the passenger cap might prevent the allocation of historic slots to airlines using the facility.
The advocate general of the Court of Justice of the European Union confirmed that the Irish Aviation Authority possesses the power to factor in Dublin Airport’s annual passenger limit when allocating take-off and landing slots.
The opinion addresses whether a national body such as the IAA may account for planning conditions imposed by a planning authority that restrict passenger numbers at capacity-constrained airports. The 32 million passenger cap, attached to Terminal 2 construction permission, was exceeded last year with 36.4 million passengers handled.
Aer Lingus and Ryanair challenged the IAA’s attempt to restrict slots to enforce compliance with the cap, arguing that the limit does not constitute a technical, operational, or environmental constraint under EU slot allocation rules.
The advocate general Manuel Campos Sánchez-Bordona determined that legal constraints from planning rules qualify as operational factors affecting airport capacity. He added that historical slots represent authorisations rather than property rights and cannot override defined capacity parameters.The opinion, while not binding, carries considerable weight and the full court ruling is expected in the coming months. The Irish Government has initiated legislation to remove the passenger cap by year end, which reduces the practical effect of the advice.
Aer Lingus shared that it strongly disagrees with the AG’s opinion on these matters and expressed firm disagreement with the non-binding view and noted that the final judgement from the court could take several months to emerge. The airline urged the Irish Government to move swiftly on legislation allowing the Minister for Transport to eliminate the passenger cap in order to deliver essential certainty for the economy.
Manuel Campos Sánchez-Bordona shared in a written statement: “Historical take-off and landing slots are not property rights, but authorisation to use airport infrastructure. They cannot be granted in disregard of the airport’s capacity as defined in the coordination parameters.In the first place, the technical, operational or environmental factors affecting airport capacity are not only physical or material factors, as the air carriers suggest, but also the legal constraints imposed by the rules which, directly or indirectly, affect the use of the airport. In his view, compliance with the limit of 32m passengers a year can be classified as one of the operating constraints. The fact that the constraint in question comes from a State planning authority does not mean it ceases to be an operational constraint. What is decisive is that it restricts airport operational capacity. It is therefore a relevant factor for the objective analysis of the possibilities of accommodating the air traffic.”
Aer Lingus shared: “regardless of the ultimate outcome of these legal proceedings, it is incumbent on the Government to now immediately accelerate the enactment and commencement of the legislation which will enable the Minister for Transport to remove the passenger cap and provide the certainty that is required for the Irish economy.”
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