Ryanair News

 
News Release
01.09.10

DAA’s High Costs Cause a 14% (1.7m) Fall In Dublin Traffic

 
 
€10 TOURIST TAX AND DAA’S HIGH FEES DAMAGE IRISH TOURISM
 
Ryanair, Ireland’s favourite airline, today (1st Sept) commented on DAA traffic figures for July which confirm that traffic declined 14% in the seven months ending July 2010 with 1.7m fewer passengers using Dublin Airport so far this year (10.5m vs. 12.2m). Ryanair called on the Govt to axe its €10 tourist tax and reverse the 40% price hikes at Dublin Airport where traffic is on target to fall by 3m passengers (to just 17m) for the second year in a row.
 
While Dublin Airport was losing 1.7m passengers in the first seven months of 2010, due to high charges and the Govt’s €10 tourist tax, Ryanair carried 5m additional passengers in the same period and a record 7.6m passengers in the month of July alone.
 
DAA & Ryanair Traffic Jan -July ‘10
Passengers
2009
2010
Fall/Rise
Dublin Apt
12.2m
10.5m
– 1.7m (–14%)
Ryanair
36.2m
41.1m
+5.0m (+14%)
 
Ryanair called on the Irish Govt to follow the lead of other EU countries which have scrapped tourist taxes and/or slashed airport fees and returned to growth. Ryanair also called for the break-up of the high cost DAA monopoly, which has presided over record traffic collapses at Dublin Airport, when many other European airports have returned to growth.
 
Ryanair’s Stephen McNamara said:
 
“It is extraordinary that Dublin Airport traffic has fallen by 1.7m passengers in the first seven months of 2010 when over the same period Ryanair has grown by 5m passengers. Clearly the Ryanair formula of low fares and avoidable charges works, whereas the Govt and DAA monopoly’s policy of targeting tourists with bogus tourism taxes and high airport charges doesn’t.
 
As a result of these increased fees and unavoidable tourist taxes Dublin Airport’s traffic is on course to fall to 17m passengers in 2010, from 20.5m in 2009. This comes at a time when capacity in the existing terminal is 30m passengers, yet the DAA are about to open the €1.2bn white elephant Terminal 2 with capacity for a further 30m passengers.

The Irish Govt cannot tax and overcharge its way out of this recession.  Dublin Airport can once again share in Ryanair’s continued growth, but only after the €10 tourist tax is axed and the DAA’s 40% price increases are reversed.”
 
 

 
Ryanair footer