High Court Ruling Pauses Summer Passenger Cap at Dublin Airport

The Irish High Court have paused a passenger cap which was due to affect flights to and from Dublin Airport

4 November 2024

The Irish High Court have paused a passenger cap which was due to affect flights to and from Dublin Airport. A positive outcome ahead of the upcoming Summer 2025 flight allocation.

Last month, The IAA (Irish Aviation Authority) restricted the number of passenger seats to 25.2 million for Summer 2025. This limit was put in place to ensure Dublin Airport remained within 32 million-a-year passenger cap.

In a bid to overturn the IAA’s decision, airlines such as Aer Lingus, Ryanair and an organisation representing American carriers, claimed the passenger cap put in place would cause significant harm as the airlines would lose take-off and landing slots during peak season.

The High Court placed a pause on the passenger cap whilst legal proceedings continue. Justice O’Donnell stated that the airlines would suffer “immediate serious consequences,” if a stay on the IAA’s passenger cap was not granted.

daa Chief Executive, Kenny Jacobs highlighted that, “Today’s decision will be welcomed by aviation as it brings clarity and allows all parties to move forward and protects jobs and connectivity which is in everyone’s interest. We are now reviewing the detail of the decision to understand the exact implications for next year,”

Jacobs continued, “The planning cap remains a significant issue for Ireland, and it is essential the planning regime now moves quickly to fully resolve the issue for the long term,”