Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees
Wednesday, 22 November 2023
Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport, Tourism and Sport
Management of Passenger Numbers at Dublin Airport: Discussion
Mr. Kenny Jacobs:
When one excludes the transfers, we will be complying, and it will bring us in at 32 million or slightly under when transfers are excluded this year. I do not think the return to travel and the growth from this year to next year will be what it was from last year to this year.
I want to answer the Leas-Chathoirleach's question on whether 40 million is enough and if we should take a longer-term view. We probably should and that should be part of the national aviation policy discussion. If one takes an airport like Abu Dhabi International Airport - we run the duty free there, and I was there recently - that is an airport with currently around 26 million passengers but it can take up to 45 million. With regard to infrastructure and planning in Ireland, yes, we should take a longer-term view and ask when we will get to the 40 million figure. We think we probably will get to 40 million by about 2028 or 2029. By the time we build that airport for 40 million passengers, we would nearly need to be in with another application asking where it goes next. That is a topic for another day, however.
No comments