“The increase was achieved despite disruption to the airport’s flight schedule for almost two days as a result of Storm Emma,” said Dublin Airport spokesperson, Siobhán O’Donnell.
“The storm had a significant impact on airport operations both in Dublin and at airports throughout Britain,” she added.
Passenger numbers during the month were boosted with St. Patrick’s Day falling at the weekend and an early Easter at the end of March.
Passenger volumes to and from continental Europe grew by 5 per cent with more than 1.1 million passengers travelling to European destinations.
UK traffic declined by 5 per cent when compared to last year with over 807,000 passengers travelling to and from Britain in March.
Passenger volumes to and from North America grew by 24 per cent, as almost 258,000 passengers travelled on transatlantic routes in March.
Other international passenger traffic to the Middle East increased by 30 per cent, with over 78,000 passengers travelling last month. The number of passengers on domestic routes increased by 12 per cent, as almost 7,600 passengers travelled this route sector last month.
The number of passengers using Dublin Airport as a gateway to connect to another destination increased by 9 per cent with more than 93,000 passengers connecting through Dublin Airport last month.
More than six million passengers have travelled through Dublin Airport in the first quarter of this year, representing a 4 per cent increase, or an extra 248,500 passengers, compared to the same period last year.
