AIRPORT OPERATOR DAA has revised its advice to passengers due to fly out of Dublin Airport.

A shortage of security screening staff has led to lengthy queues inside and outside the airport in recent weeks, causing some passengers to miss their flights. 

In a statement, the daa said that anyone due to fly out of the airport on short-haul flights to Europe or the UK should arrive up to two and a half hours before their departure time. 

“Passengers flying on short-haul flights taking off after 08.30 are advised not to arrive at the airport any earlier than 06.00,” the daa said in a statement.

For long-haul flights, it is recommended that passengers arrive up to three and a half hours before their departure time.

The daa said this will “alleviate pressure on the passenger security screening area and enable an enhanced airside travel experience during the busy first wave of departing flights”. 

It added that there is “no need” for passengers to arrive earlier than two and a half hours for a short-haul flight.

Before travelling to the airport, passengers are advised to check with their airline as to when check-in and bag drop-off opens and to plan their arrival at the airport based on that information.

They are also being encouraged to check in for their flight online where possible. 

The daa said it was adjusting its passenger advice following the consistent delivery of improved queuing times at security screening at Dublin Airport since the end of March, including over the busy Easter weekend.

It said security screening will remain open 24 hours a day, seven days a week in Terminal 1, while security in Terminal 2 will open from 4.00am. 

Passenger advice will remain under review and may adjust “either up or down, as necessary over the comings period as the peak of the summer season approaches”. 

The daa said around 200,000 passengers departed Dublin Airport over the Easter weekend, the highest number of departures over four consecutive days since Christmas 2019. It had advised passengers to arrive up to three and a half hours before their flight.

It said that no passenger missed their flight as a result of security delays, with “the vast majority of passengers” being processed through security “in under 40 minutes in both terminals”.

It added that it has been able to “consistently keep queue levels at moderate levels” recently due to deploying a staff taskforce in the terminals, refining security queuing systems and rostering at peak times to cope with growing demand and passengers’ adherence to arrival time advice. 

“Dublin Airport is currently in the process of hiring almost 300 new security screening staff to help it meet the significant increase in demand for international travel,” the daa said.

Good progress is being made in that recruitment process with more than 250 candidates successfully coming through interviews over the past two weeks.

“While successful candidates are trained, Garda vetted and put through compulsory security checks over the coming period – a process which takes around 5-6 weeks – daa is working to ensure that it has the maximum number of security lanes open at all times in both terminals.”

The daa also thanked passengers for “their co-operation and patience over recent weeks to ensure the stabilisation of security queue times in both terminals at Dublin Airport”.