The number of people who passed through Ireland’s five main airports in the first quarter of 2023 increased by 62%, compared to the same quarter last year, and by 29%, compared to the same quarter in 2020, according to the Central Statistics Office (CSO).
Details
According to a statement published on CSO.ie, 7.6 million passengers passed through Ireland’s five main airports in the first quarter of this year, with that figure being 62% higher than the first quarter of last year and 29% higher than the first quarter of 2020.
Close to three million more passengers used Irish airports in the first quarter of this year than in the first quarter of 2022, with the number of flights to and from Irish airports increasing by over 15,700, year on year, in the first quarter of this year.
Ireland’s five main airports handled close to 57,000 flights in the first quarter of this year, with Dublin handling 85% (48,515) thereof and Cork handling 7% (3,707) of all flights.
London Heathrow, London Gatwick and Amsterdam Schiphol were the most popular routes for passengers travelling through Dublin Airport in the first quarter of this year, while the most popular route for Cork and Shannon airports was London Heathrow, the most popular route for Ireland West Airport Knock was London Stansted, and the most popular route for Kerry Airport was London Luton.
The number of passengers who arrived to or departed from Ireland in March of this year was close to two and half times that of March 2020, and up by 2%, compared to March 2019.
Additionally, air freight handled by Irish airports in the first quarter of this year decreased by 2%, year on year.
Statement By Statistician
The statement published on CSO.ie quoted statistician Dr Nele van der Wielen as saying, “The figures show an increase in international travel during Q1 2023. Passengers travelling to and from Ireland are up 29%, compared with Q1 2020, and up by 3%, compared with same period in 2019.
“Over 1.4 million more passengers travelled to Ireland in Q1 2023, when compared with Q1 2022, and there were over 95,000 more passengers when compared with the same period in 2019.
“In Q1 2023, almost 3.8 million passengers departed from Ireland, which was almost 1.5 million more than the same period in 2022, and over 91,000 more passengers, when compared with Q1 2019.
“The amount of air freight handled by the main airports decreased by 2%, to 37,114 tonnes, in the first three months of 2023, when compared with the same period in 2022.
“In the first quarter of 2023, almost nine out of every ten passengers – 88% – on international flights in the five main airports were travelling to or from Europe. The two most popular countries of origin/destination were the United Kingdom and Spain.
“Outside of Europe, the United States of America was the most popular country of origin/destination in Q1 of 2023.”
Read More: Overseas Arrivals To Ireland Increased Year On Year In April
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