Following the news that profits at Aer Lingus were up 40% in the first half of 2017, the airline has announced that it wishes to expand its transatlantic services from Dublin, with the possibility of adding a direct route from the city to Las Vegas.
However, Willie Walsh, chief executive of Aer Lingus's parent company, International Airlines Group, has proclaimed that bottlenecks at Dublin Airport could get in the way of these plans. As reported by The Irish Times, Walsh asserted that problems with airplane parking and baggage handling are the primary causes of delays at the airport.
He stated, "The current airport performance is not in line with what we would like to see. Unless we have confidence that they can address these issues, we would have to question whether we put more capacity into Dublin."
Responding to Walsh's assertion that upgrades to baggage-handling software to which IAG objected are at the root of the problems, a spokesman for Dublin Airport said, "Dublin Airport is committed to working with all its customers to help them operate efficiently and to grow their business at Dublin. Dublin Airport is currently investing €100 million per year to upgrade and maintain its facilities for the benefit of airlines and passengers. In the first six months of this year, Dublin Airport passenger numbers increased by 6% to a record 13.8 million and we are seeing growth from all of our major airline customers."
