Decision is set to be challenged in the courts by Ryanair, Aer Lingus and US airlines
The authority said it expects that demand for the slots will “significantly exceed” the cap. Airlines that operated ‘series of slots’ last summer will be given priority, but the IAA anticipates that not all of these can be accommodated either.
The formal decision is likely to trigger High Court challenges from airlines including Ryanair and Aer Lingus, the lobby group Airlines for America, and the Dublin Airport Authority (DAA).
At a press conference last Thursday, Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary said it would legal challenge any attempt by the IAA to remove slots next summer. He added that Ryanair was confident in legal advice it has received that the IAA does not have the legal power to take away existing landing slots.
“We have lawyers working on the judicial review proceedings. Aer Lingus are working on them as well, as are the Dublin Airport Authority,” Mr O’Leary said. “We encourage the IAA to finalise the draft order and then we will all end up in the Four Courts again.
“It will probably go for appeal but it’s in clear contravention of EU law. The Dutch tried to reduce slots last year at Schiphol, and it was thrown out by the European courts. The Dublin cap will also be thrown out by the European courts. [That] won’t come in time for the Six Nations rugby internationals – it might come in time for Cheltenham.”
The summer 2025 scheduling season starts on March 30 and runs to October 25. In formalising its decision, the IAA said it had taken account of about 70 responses received as part of a public consultation, which closed last month.
In 2007, An Bord Pleanala imposed a planning condition on DAA’s development of the second terminal at Dublin Airport, limiting its total capacity to 32 million passengers a year.
The DAA has now applied for planning permission to Fingal County Council for that cap to be raised, but a decision is not expected for about two years. In the meantime, Dublin Airport is struggling to stay within the limit, which is set to be breached this year.
This is the second time the IAA has imposed a seasonal limit, having restricted the capacity for the Winter 2024 season, which runs from October 26 to March 29 of next year. The seat cap for that period is 14.4 million.
“The decision for Summer 2025 results in a total seat capacity of 39.6 million across the two seasons,” the IAA says. “The seat cap is greater than the passenger cap as it takes account of expected load factors – how many passengers are expected on each flight relative to the total number of seats on the aircraft – and an adjustment for transfer passengers.
“The IAA anticipates that, like Winter 2024, this decision will result in very little, if any, available capacity for new slot requests, or for ad hoc slot requests, for passenger flights using the capacity of Terminal 1 or Terminal 2 during the Summer 2025 scheduling season.”
The limits on Dublin Airport this winter has led to many Lapland flights being relocated to Belfast, while the Leinster rugby team is also planning to fly out of Belfast to its away games.
Commenting on the next summer’s cap, DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs said it has done everything possible to dampen demand and asked the High Court to review the winter-slot decision. He said the announcement means DAA should be in a position to comply with the cap in 2025.
“However, a million seats coming out next year has real financial consequences for Ireland. We estimate the damage to the economy to be at least €500m, increasing to €700m if we consider lost airfares too,” he said. “There are also real consequences for airlines, people working at the airport and the travelling public, as well as knock-on impacts on tourism and jobs. This issue is no longer just an airport or a planning issue, it is now an Ireland issue.”
Mr O’Leary has claimed that the Transport Minister Eamon Ryan has the power under Section 10 of the Aviation Regulation Act, 2001 to instruct the IAA to allow extra airline slots for this winter and again for next summer.
He said DAA’s planning application to Fingal council to lift the cap could continue to proceed alongside the ministerial intervention.
