Airlines should not have to pay for new Dublin Airport infrastructure before it is built, the industry warns regulators in submissions on passenger charges.
Air travel overseer the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) intends setting new passenger charges for Dublin Airport next year that will apply from 2027 to 2030.
The charges, levied on airlines for each passenger they fly out of the hub, will help pay for its operations and plans to expand to cope with demand likely to reach 40 million travellers a-year.
Dublin Airport does not need “pre-funding” for big projects meant to accommodate increased demand, industry body, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) warns in a submission to the authority.
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“It would be our position that this pre-funding is not needed for these projects,” says the association.
Dublin Airport is State-owned with a good credit rating and should not need advance funding for any projects until they are “brought into beneficial use”, the association argues.
Planning delays meant that Dublin Airport did not spend as much on infrastructure as it expected when charges were last set, the IATA points out.
The association maintains that the airport should give realistic timing for the likely completion of big projects based on the constraints that it faces.
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State airports company DAA is seeking permission from Fingal County Council for a €2 billion expansion at Dublin that will allow the airport handle 40 million passengers a-year.
Aer Lingus says that the airport has not shown that it can build large projects in a timely manner.
The airline urges the IAA to “carefully consider the incentives” associated with spending on big projects.
Ryanair says the current approach allows Dublin Airport to set the agenda in terms of what projects it wants without proper checks to ensure that they are the best solution for passengers.
The airline maintains that carriers paid too much per passenger last year and in 2023.
DAA’s submission argues that Dublin’s capacity is squeezed and will remain so through to 2030.
The company stresses that it needs an “appropriate charges settlement” to deliver the best services for passengers and to continue to improve its facilities.
The IAA indicated on Tuesday that it was unlikely to change any of the key criteria that it uses to determine what Dublin Airport can charge its airline customers over the four-year period.
The IAA regulates charges at Dublin as it is the dominant airport in the Republic.
