Summer passenger numbers at Cork Airport take off

The summer passenger surge continued at both Cork and Dublin airports in July, as Cork Airport saw passenger numbers rise by 15%.

July was the busiest month ever at both Cork and Dublin airports, as Cork Airport welcomed 378,000 passengers, 15% more than July last year. Dublin Airport greeted 3.75m passengers, a 6.9% increase in the same period.

According to DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs: “Cork was once again Ireland’s fastest-growing airport in July, with passenger traffic up 15% compared with July 2025.

“Our hardworking team in Cork continue to do a great job in keeping our passengers moving and happy, no matter how busy we get.

“Cork’s progress shows no sign of abating, with the airport’s winter schedule already taking shape, and passengers are going to love Aer Lingus’ recently announced two exciting new routes to Prague and Geneva.

“KLM’s announcement of a third daily service from Cork to Amsterdam from October onwards is great news too.

“With the first phase of the €200m Cork Airport capital development plan due to commence imminently, it was encouraging to see Cork City Council granting planning permission in July for an additional 670 long-term car parking spaces.

“While there’s lots of good work being done to improve public transport connectivity at Cork Airport, the need for additional parking has become apparent to all, given the growth of passenger numbers in the last few years.”

At Dublin Airport, demand to fly was so high that every single day in July saw more than 100,000 passengers move through the airport’s two terminals, with more than 120,000 passengers landing and taking off on no less than 17 days.

“Demand to fly in and out of Dublin Airport has never been higher, and the record numbers in July included a strong flow of tourists and visitors from overseas and also Irish residents heading abroad for their annual summer break,” said Mr Jacobs.

“The big numbers travelling in June and July mean we are revising upwards our expected total passenger number for the year, and we now forecast that around 36.2m passengers will have used Dublin Airport by year-end.”