The Irish Aviation Authority has imposed a capacity limit of 14.4 million seats at Dublin Airport for the next winter season, which will run from October 24 to March 29 of next year.

The limit, which applies to all passenger services using Terminal 1 or Terminal 2, has been put in place to take account of the 32 million annual passenger cap at the airport imposed by planning conditions. Airlines will not be given individual quotas.

The IAA said it got about 70 submissions about its draft decision on the proposed seasonal sat cap. Airlines made the case that the planning conditions were not a relevant constraint, and that the proposal of a 14.4 million seat cap was overly conservative.

Local residents argued that the planning condition was relevant, but felt the IAA’s proposal was too generous. The authority said that, having considered the responses, it decided not to change its draft decision.

Responding to the announcement, the Dublin Airport Authority said it welcomed the IAA’s decision to establish a seat-cap parameter for airlines granted slots to fly into the airport during the winter 2024 season, as part of efforts to comply with the 32m passenger cap.

“However, DAA believes there continues to be a significant risk that passenger numbers in 2024 will exceed the 32 million cap, as additional measures DAA proposed have not been accepted by the regulator in its final decision,” it said.

Kenny Jacobs, the agency’s CEO, said Dublin Airport was currently caught between a rock and a hard place. “We want to continue to connect Ireland with the world, but we are also trying to comply with a planning condition, even if the condition is less relevant then when decided almost 20 years ago.

"Pending the approval of our application to increase our passenger numbers to 40 million a year, we are making every effort to restrict growth to stay within the cap.

“The IAA has an important role in supporting this. as it controls how many slots are allocated to airlines every year. At this stage, more action is necessary and we will work with the IAA and airlines so that any reductions are well managed.”

The DAA has said that in order to comply with the passenger cap, it has taken away significant growth incentives for airlines, is proposing to reduce unscheduled flights, and has asked some charter carriers to fly to airports other than Dublin.

The operator has told the IAA that a final decision on its application to Fingal County Council to increase the passenger cap to 40m a year, which was submitted last December, is unlikely to be available this year or next.

The IAA does not accept it has a role in making sure the 32m passenger limit is obeyed. It says while the number of aircraft movements can be limited, the coordination parameters on their own cannot deliver a specific passenger volume over a calendar year. “The proposed Passenger Air Traffic Movement (PATM) seat cap is a capacity parameter which is the closest proxy available for a passenger limitation,” it said.

Only 5pc of Dublin Airport’s passengers did not use Terminal 1 or 2 last year, according to DAA statistics. The remainder includes cargo and General Aviation operations.

The DAA expects a loss of 249,000 transit passengers in 2024, which will reduce by about 0.7pc the proportion of all passengers not using either Terminal 1 or 2.

Reporting on:independent.ie