Less than a year ago the DAA were being slammed for not building all the airbridges, now you complain that you have too nice a terminal. Cake and eat it comes to mind.
The DAA designed a very expensive terminal, then cut corners afterwards resulting in a ridiculous situation of an airport terminal that cost over €100 million yet has only one airbridge. What should have happened is that a more modest terminal with airbridges was designed from day 1.
People also forget about all the support the DAA gives to ORK, in terms of knowhow, in the same way that Southampton punches way over its weight because it has the support of the BAA.
Support????? Like how the DAA tried to sell the land bank around Cork Airport which would have left the airport landlocked, and would have prevented any further expansion. Or the time the DAA didn't tell SNN that EI were going to withdraw SNN-LHR, a fact which was known well in advance by the DAA. The DAA do not care about ORK or SNN, their sole concern is DUB.
Cork's profit is because it has zero debt of its own on its books - every other company in Ireland would like this positioning.
But the thing is that as part of the breakup of Aer Rianta, Cork was meant to be made debt free on independence while the DAA would keep all Aer Rianta's assets which I believe were worth about €1 billion at the time. However the commitment to Cork was later reneged, but the DAA still got to keep all the assets (most of which it has since sold).