Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 29 April 2015
161. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the prospects for the creation of an intercontinental air transport hub here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16992/15]
View answerThe Irish airport network is strategically important to Irish society and to our economy, providing the infrastructure to ensure our connectivity to the rest of the world and enabling economic development through trade, tourism and inward investment. The ability to ensure optimum connectivity is dependent on airports attracting a wide range of passengers, including inward and transiting passengers, in addition to outward passengers based on local demand.
Under the draft National Aviation Policy, which will be finalised and published shortly, Dublin Airport is identified as having the size and features favouring its development as a vibrant secondary hub, combining local and transfer passengers to create critical mass for new destinations and higher frequencies, and competing effectively with the UK and other European airports for the expanding global aviation services market. Dublin Airport enjoys a strategic geographic location on the North Atlantic Trans-Continental route as well as US Preclearance, single terminal transfers and a location near the national capital city with its significant catchment area.
Dublin Airport is already well on its way towards becoming such a hub for transatlantic and wider global passengers. Approximately 750,000 passengers used Dublin Airport as a hub in 2014, an increase of 37% on the previous year. Transit passenger growth is a major contributor to overall growth at the airport, which is set to continue with an 11% increase in seat capacity scheduled for summer 2015.
Transatlantic traffic is a major component of Dublin's transit traffic. In 2014, transatlantic traffic increased by 14% with more than 2.1 million passengers taking flights between Dublin and North America, including Canada. With the new flights scheduled for summer 2015, eleven destinations in the US and four in Canada will fly an average of 47 daily services to and from North America.
