In a clear but unnamed reference to Ryanair, Dublin Airport Authority Chairman David Dilger has hit back at ‘one highly vocal customer’ which he says ‘criticises every element of the company and, indeed its very existence’.

In his Chairman’s report in the company’s latest 2010 annual report, Dilger said: “DAA has one highly vocal customer which publicly criticises every element of the company and, indeed its very existence. 

SELF-SERVING AGENDA
“That customer’s agenda is naturally self-serving, as its principal and understandable goal is to increase the wealth of its shareholders. That company’s claims are not representative of the views of any other DAA customer, and its policy demands are designed to maximise the profits of that airline. 

“These demands therefore should be viewed in that context and should not be deemed as a proxy for the views of passengers, or for the views of the tourism industry or the business community.

“In contrast, DAA operates its facilities commercially and in the long-term interests of the State, the wider Irish economy and all our customers. We do not and will not favour one customer over another and we will continue to operate, maintain and develop our airports to meet the broad needs of both existing and future customers.”

‘COMPETITIVE’
In the same address in the annual report, Dilger points out that charges at Dublin Airport ‘remain hugely competitive’ when compared to its peers. 

He says Dublin Airport’s passenger charge during the year under review was more than 25% lower than the average E.12.53 ($17.78) passenger charge levied in 2009 by comparable European airports such as Stansted, Gatwick, Brussels, Copenhagen, Lisbon, Zürich, Vienna, Munich, Athens and Oslo.

He adds that Dublin’s charges were also significantly lower than the charges at larger European airports, such as London Heathrow, Paris CDG, Amsterdam and Frankfurt.