Passenger numbers at Cork Airport up 7% in January as cap in Dublin hinders growth
In Shannon, Ryanair announced it would add extra flights on eight routes including Alicante, Edinburgh, Faro, Kaunas, Krakow, Malaga, Porto, and Reus. Picture: David Creedon
Operator of Dublin and Cork airports DAA has released its first monthly passenger numbers for 2025, showing Cork Airport remains on trend as the fastest growing airport in Ireland with 7% more passengers in January compared to the same month last year.
However, growth at Dublin Airport was flat at 2.1m passengers, with DAA noting that there would have been up to 200,000 additional passengers in January if there was no cap at the airport.
"Dublin Airport contributes €10bn in gross value added to the Irish economy and supports 116,100 jobs in the Republic of Ireland," the operator said.
"ACI Europe research confirms every 10% increase in direct connectivity yields an increase of 0.5% in gross domestic product per capita. The cap continues to be a drag on all parts of the economy in the winter months and Ireland needs the cap to go in 2025."
The DAA also noted the impact that Storm Éowyn had on both airports, resulting in the cancellation of more than 230 flights scheduled to depart from or arrive at Dublin Airport.
Cork Airport also faced significant disruptions, with airlines adjusting their operations due to the storm's severity and the cancellation of 19 flights. However, both airports responded well and were able to resume operations from mid-morning on the day of the storm, the DAA added.
Speaking on its passenger numbers, Niall MacCarthy, Cork Airport Managing Director, welcomed a strong start to the year, noting: "We are very happy to see such a positive start to the year with a 7% increase in passenger traffic in January.
"This growth is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team and the strong support from our passengers and airline partners."
Kenny Jacobs, DAA CEO, added: "Cork Airport's impressive passenger growth is a clear indicator of the airport's vital role in supporting jobs in tourism, business and internationally trading companies right across the South of Ireland.
"DAA is committed to supporting Cork Airport to grow to five million passengers a year within the next decade. We’ve lots of exciting plans including investing in expanding the terminal facilities as well as investing in infrastructure."
Meanwhile, Ryanair announced on Wednesday that it will operate 33 routes from Cork Airport this summer including one new destination and increased frequencies on 14 other routes.
The airline said it would increase flights to and from Alicante, Barcelona, Edinburgh, Gdansk, Girona, Liverpool, London, Malaga, Manchester, Mallorca, Paris, Reus, Seville, and Valencia, as well as launch a new route to Fuerteventura, which has not operated from Cork Airport since before the pandemic.
Ryanair said it has also added extra seats from Cork to Birmingham for the Cheltenham Festival from March 11-14 and to Rome for the Six Nations Rugby match between Ireland and Italy on March 15.
The airline's traffic at Cork Airport has risen by 21% year-on-year which it says is underpinned by its four Cork-based aircraft, including three environmentally efficient "Gamechanger" aircraft that reduce carbon and noise emissions by 16% and 40% respectively.
In Shannon, Ryanair announced it would add extra flights on eight routes including Alicante, Edinburgh, Faro, Kaunas, Krakow, Malaga, Porto, and Reus.
"The vast majority of this exciting Summer 2025 schedule will operate on Ryanair’s 4 Cork-based aircraft," said Ryanair Chief Marketing Officer, Dara Brady, which he said reflects a $400m (€384m) investment by the airline.
In addition, Mr Brady called on the Government to support growth at regional airports, noting the passenger cap at Knock, Kerry and Donegal airports which "bizarrely penalises regional airports for exceeding 1m passenger per annum."
"We call on the new Irish Government to help airlines, like Ryanair, to continue to grow at regional airports by expanding the traffic scope for the 2026-2030 Regional Airports Programme to at least 3m passenger per annum, which would allow regional airports to grow traffic without being penalised for doing so," Mr Brady added.
Speaking to the Mr Brady said Ryanair's growth at regional airports has risen by 65% since the pandemic, adding: "We will continue to grow there as much as we can, but we want to grow across all of Ireland."
Noting the Dublin passenger cap, which has been temporarily suspended for Summer 2025, Mr Brady said that while it continues to grow at Cork and Shannon, the airports are not a substitute for Dublin.
"It's not just a case of moving all the extra routes and aircraft we have in Dublin down to Cork. We hope that Ryanair can continue to grow in Dublin, as well as in Cork and Shannon for the foreseeable future."
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