DAA reject Ryanair offer of 4m traffic growth

At a meeting this morning with Ryanair, the DAA Chief Executive, Declan Collier, refused to extend the DAA's current traffic incentive scheme (which Aer Lingus benefit from although they are cutting traffic). Instead the DAA offered Ryanair a discount scheme under which;

a) The growth discounts would be given at Dublin only after traffic losses in Cork and Shannon were made up.

b) Only 40% of the discounts generated by Ryanair's traffic growth would be awarded to Ryanair, whereas 60% of Ryanair's growth discounts would be given to Aer Lingus and other airlines at Dublin, even as they continue to cut traffic.

Ryanair's Michael O'Leary said;

"It's extraordinary that the DAA, having presided over two years of traffic collapses during which Dublin Airport's traffic has fallen from 23.5m to just 18.5m per annum, has now rejected Ryanair's offer of 4m passenger growth which would generate up to 4,000 jobs and more than €2bn for Dublin and Irish tourism. The DAA is presently giving discounts to Aer Lingus, despite the fact that Aer Lingus' traffic is in decline, but have this morning refused to extend these discounts to Ryanair because Mr Collier claims that Ryanair's growth would be "too expensive" for the DAA.

It is absurd even for the DAA, to propose that if Ryanair delivers 4m additional passengers, 60% of these growth discounts will be allocated to Ryanair's competitor airlines at Dublin Airport and even these growth discounts will be further reduced by traffic declines which the DAA preside over at Cork and Shannon airports. The DAA want Ryanair's growth to subsidise their traffic falls at Cork and Shannon, and they also want to allocate 60% of Ryanair's growth discounts at Dublin Airport to Aer Lingus, Aer Arann and other non-growth airlines.

Ryanair will grow by 5m passengers in 2011 but will not now allocate any of this traffic growth at Dublin. While Dublin Airport will now suffer a third year of traffic declines Declan Collier manages two empty terminals and funnels "growth" discounts to Aer Lingus and other traffic cutting airlines. Only a government owned monopoly could mismanage an airport and offer growth incentives to airlines that don't grow.

Ryanair believes that the new government should finally break up the failed DAA airport monopoly and Mr Collier can then spend more time sitting on the board of the AIB where his undoubted commercial talents are having a similar effect on banking as they are having on Ireland's airports."