IT’S WON SOME awards, is getting a new departure hall and possibly even a new terminal. Now, new figures show that Dublin Airport is the fastest growing major airport in Europe.
According to Airports Council International (ACI) Europe, Dublin Airport experienced a 9% increase in passenger numbers in August 2016 compared to the same period last year.
The ACI says that airports in Ireland “experienced very dynamic growth” in the past year. This compares favourably to our continental counterparts, as passenger traffic across the European Airport Network reported an average increase of just 2%.
Terrorism
Terrorism risks and other political factors are a key driver of falling passenger numbers in non-EU countries, as the fallout from the Turkish coup and other instability in the region saw passenger numbers in the country fall almost 15%, while traffic in Russian airports fell 5.5%.
Over 40 people died in the Istanbul-Ataturk Airport terrorist attack in July, and traffic fell significantly at the airport in the ACI figures.
Olivier Jankovec, director general at ACI Europe, warns: “Geopolitical and terrorism risks are increasingly shaping traffic performance for Europe’s Airports.”
“A very strong year”
In the group of airports with more than 25 million passengers a year, Dublin Airport has performed better than Amsterdam Schiphol (+7.9%), Barcelona (+6.8%), Copenhagen (+6.6%) and London Gatwick (+5.7%).
Paul O’Kane, chief communications office for the daa, told TheJournal.ie: “We’re having a very strong year. A combination of 18 new routes, and the expansion of services on 24 routes is helping to drive these passenger increases in what has been a record year for tourism in Ireland.
“A report compiled last year by Intervistas has shown that Dublin Airport supports or facilitates 97,400 jobs, while contributing €6.9 billion to Ireland’s GDP (gross domestic product). As passenger numbers continue to rise, these economic benefits will only get better.”
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