Following on from Askeroid's post above, here is an article from today's
Irish Independent which sheds some more light on the issue of Ryanair's objections to the new terminal. Incidentally, I love the third last paragraph where the following quote appears: "Dublin Airport is also the second most efficient airport in a peer group of 25 European airports, in terms of ratio of costs to passenger numbers."
yeah, right!
Gloves off in battle on DAA airport terminal
by
Tom McEnaney
RYANAIR ended a nine-month detente with Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) yesterday when it outlined plans to vigorously oppose DAA's plans for a second terminal at Dublin Airport.
"You can't trust DAA to build an efficient, low-cost terminal," Mr O'Leary said, calling the planned terminal "badly designed, in the wrong location, (and) is five times more expensive than other similar terminal facilities in the UK and Europe".
Mr O'Leary has for many years been a very vocal thorn in DAA's side, but last year after DAA came under new management the Ryanair chief executive laid his problems with the authority aside and said he would support plans for the new terminal.
To mark the announcement, which was made in the days before Christmas of last year, he dressed in a Santa Claus outfit and posed for photographers with a piece of cake labelled 'humble pie'.
The only props at yesterday's press conference were two over-head projectors used to detail what Ryanair sees as the deficiencies in DAA's plans for the new terminal.
Mr O'Leary has also dusted off the airline's own plans for a new terminal, which he said would cost €250m.
There were few details on the Ryanair proposal which Mr O'Leary wants to see built to the north of the airport adjacent to Pier D, which is almost exclusively used by Ryanair. The site for the Ryanair proposal is currently occupied by hangar buildings owned by DAA.
Mr O'Leary's comments were timely, coming on the first day of the Bord Pleanála hearing into DAA's planning application for the new terminal.
Industry sources pointed out that Mr O'Leary's comments may also have been timed to damage Aer Lingus, the expected occupant of the new terminal, which is due to publish its flotation price.
DAA's rejected the accusations. It said: "The maximum airport charge at Dublin Airport, at just over €6 per passenger, is the lowest of any major airport in Europe.
"Nonetheless, according to an analysis carried out for the Aviation Regulator in 2005, Dublin Airport is also the second most efficient airport in a peer group of 25 European airports, in terms of ratio of costs to passenger numbers."
Mr O'Leary said that DAA's plans for a second terminal would cost €700m. DAA said the cost would only be €400m.
Included in the Ryanair's estimate of the cost is €150m write-off on Pier C, which it said "they (DAA) now propose to scrap altogether. DAA said the Pier C cost only €60m and more than half of it will be incorporated in the new terminal. Mr O'Leary said he object to An Bord Pleanála, the Commission for Aviation Regulation, the Competition Authority and the European Commission.