Tourist and business organisations will advise the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) on passengers’ needs as the regulator prepares to set Dublin Airport’s charges for the next five years.
The IAA has begun consultations that will determine the passenger fees that Dublin Airport manager DAA can charge airlines from 2027 to 2031 this year.
It has established a passenger advisory group that will aid the regulator in monitoring how the airport deals with security waiting times, cleanliness and service.
The group will assist the authority in judging whether DAA’s spending projects “align with passenger priorities”, according to a statement.
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The IAA establishes quality targets when it sets the price cap, which is cut it the airport falls short of those standards.
Current targets include a maximum wait of 30 minutes in security queues along with ratings of “good” or “very good” for cleanliness, staff helpfulness and how easy it is for passenger to find their way through the airport.
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The group is drawn from organisations representing Irish consumers, the tourism industry, passengers with reduced mobility or disabilities and business people. They include the Consumers’ Association of Ireland, Fáilte Ireland, the National Disability Authority and employers’ lobby group, Ibec.
The authority is committed to working with the group to ensure that passengers’ priorities “are at the heart of the IAA’s decisions”, said Adrian Corcoran, the body’s director of economic regulation.
Airlines warned against increases in Dublin Airport’s charges when the IAA signalled last year that it would begin consultations in 2026.
Michael O’Leary, Ryanair’s chief executive, argued on Wednesday that the DAA’s fees should be frozen. The carrier, Dublin Airport’s biggest airline, has regularly accused DAA of wasting cash.
However, the airports’ company maintains that its charges are among the cheapest of any comparable airports in Europe.
The company plans to spend around €2 billion on extending Dublin Airport to allow it cope with 40 million passengers a year.
Local planning authority, Fingal County Council, is considering the State company’s planning application, which includes a bid to raise the airport’s controversial passenger limit to 40 million from 32 million.
