Come on guys, let's be realistic here; let's focus on what can actually be done. We need an airport. We need the capacity that's there already, as insufficient and ill-planned as it may be.
It wouldn't surprise me if the chief engineer didn't know what he was doing, but that may not be his fault, if the company itself doesn't know. We heard - how many months ago now, two or three? - that the planned new terminal was too small, because the DAA hadn't been aware of growth plans of the two major carriers* (we'll get to that one later). So what's happened since? Zip, nada, rien ...
I've said it before and I'll say it again, the DAA needs to be removed from day to day running of passenger terminals and marketing and be confined to airfield management (i.e. the regulatory side of running an airport). Then, bring in the likes of Schiphol, SATS (Singapore) - people with worldwide experience of operating top class airports, with both low cost and full service operations side by side, not to mention cargo facilities too.
One of the key problems, I think, is that we run up against capacity walls which simply don't exist at most other airports. OK, LHR and FRA are slot restricted, but with most other airports, if the demand arises for new cargo or long haul pax routes, you can bring those onstream, because the airport is equipped to handle them: Dublin isn't. And tragically - due to a fatal combination of ineptitude on the part of the operator and poor oversight (through lack of interest) on the part of the govt, there's absolutely no clear willingness to tackle the issue. Only today, there was a report expressing serious concern about exports (which are declining, but no one in govt has yet noticed the link between the lack of investment in cargo facilities at the country's main airport and the issue of exports; don't govt departments talk to each other?)
(*It struck me that the DAA's excuse, that it didn't take account of the growth ambitions of the two Irish carriers, was a red herring. It's extremely unlikely, I think, that FR would want to operate from T2, as this would mean splitting its operation between piers at opposite ends of the passenger terminal complex; that would only add cost and inefficiency and I just can't see FR doing that.)