LAST UPDATE | 22 Feb 2023

AER LINGUS HAS said “severe disruption” to airport operations by drone activity is “unacceptable” after all flights were temporarily suspended yesterday evening. 

A post on the airport’s Twitter feed shortly before 9pm said: “Due to illegal drone activity in the vicinity of Dublin Airport, all flight operations are currently suspended.”

A message sent out some minutes later said: “Flight operations at Dublin Airport have now resumed after a suspension of 30 minutes.”

A third message from the airport said: “We would remind drone users that it is illegal to fly a drone within 5km of the airport.

“Severe punishments must follow for anyone found guilty.”

On the day in which a second person in two weeks has been charged with flying a drone near Dublin Airport, we would remind drone users that it is illegal to fly a drone within 5km of the airport. Severe punishments must follow for anyone found guilty.

— Dublin Airport (@DublinAirport) February 21, 2023

In a statement to The Journal, a spokesperson for the Dublin Airport Authority (daa) said flights were suspended between 8.22pm and 8.52pm.

“An Garda Síochána was immediately advised. There were no flight diversions,” the spokesperson said.

“On the day in which a second person in two weeks has been charged with flying a drone near Dublin Airport, we would remind drone users that it is illegal to fly a drone within 5km of an Irish airport.”

The spokesperson continued: “The State must consider counter drone technology for use by the Department of Defence to take down drones that threaten passengers and aircraft activity in such a reckless manner.”

This is the latest in a series of drone incidents at Ireland’s biggest airport in recent weeks.

There were several days of disruption to flights earlier this month, while two people have faced court this month accused of disrupting flights at the airport by flying a drone.

Yesterday, a man accused of causing a security alert by flying a drone into a “critical area” of the airport was granted bail.

Government ministers have vowed to tackle the recurring issue.

In a statement this morning, Aer Lingus has said “severe disruption to airport operations by drone activity is unacceptable”. 

“It is very concerning that repeated incidents of drone activity are taking place in Dublin Airport,” the statement said. 

Aer Lingus said “the plan for aviation safety which contains actions to address the risks of drone infringements, and which has already been published, must now be progressed as a matter of urgency”. 

“The severe disruption imposed on passengers, airlines and other stakeholders is unacceptable and measures to address the drone issue must be now expedited in order to prevent any further recurrance of this type of disruption,” it said. 

In a statement issued last night, Ryanair also said the disruption caused is “unacceptable”.

The statement added: “Ryanair calls on Transport Minister Eamon Ryan to do something – anything – to protect Ireland’s main airport from these drone disruptions.”

A Ryanair spokesperson that Minister Ryan “promises ‘stronger enforcement measures’ but delivers nothing”.

The airline’s spokesperson added: “Minister Ryan should explain why other EU Airports have effective drone prevention measures in place but Dublin keeps being disrupted while he is asleep on the job.”

Ryan and Minister of State for International Road Transport Jack Chambers met with representatives from the daa, the Irish Aviation Authority, the Department of Justice and gardaí earlier this month to address drone activity at Dublin Airport.

The ministers said they take the issue very seriously and will work with the relevant state bodies to ensure ensure it is tackled effectively, saying that the safety of passengers, crew and airport staff is the primary consideration.

A statement from the Department of Transport earlier this month noted that the daa has a drone detection system in operation that gives early warning of illegal drone activity.

Meanwhile, the Irish Aviation Authority has warned that “the use of drones in restricted areas in the vicinity of airports results in increased safety risks to the management of aircraft”, as well as disruption for passengers and airlines.

- With additional reporting from Hayley Halpin, Diarmuid Pepper and Jane Moore