Cork only airport to record negative growth as daily flights down by 5%

Cork Airport was the only airport to record negative growth in new monthly figures published by the Irish Aviation Authority.

Dublin and Shannon both recorded more than a 5% increase in the average number of daily flights but Cork Airport saw a 5% fall in the daily average in September of this year.

The total number of flights in Irish airspace increased by 0.8% when compared to Sept 2012, with the busiest day being Sept 6 with 1,557 flights in Irish airspace.

On a cumulative basis commercial terminal traffic for Dublin, Cork and Shannon airports for Jan to Sept 2013 was up by +2.7%, compared to the same period in 2012

The head of the IAA, Eamonn Brennan, said that the growth of traffic in Dublin, up 6.6%, was a positive development.

“This sustained growth is very encouraging news for Dublin Airport and the wider economy.

“September was also a good month for Shannon, up 5.5% year-on-year. There is some way to go to catch up with previous levels during the peak years but 2013 is a step in the right direction,” Mr Brennan said.

“In Dublin, the IAA is handling this growth phase both safely and cost effectively through our innovative and award-winning airspace management technique known as point merge,” the IAA CEO added.

The IAA continued to achieve an extremely low level of en-route and airport delay.

From Jan to Sept 2013, the IAA’s monthly analysis of delays from Air Traffic Flow Regulations indicates that of the 302 delayed aircraft, 99.3% of these delays were weather related.