Dublin Airport has said it is trying to recover from the heavy impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, in response to complaints about long queues.
Ireland’s main airport struggling with demand
Passengers of Dublin Airport took to social media over the past week in frustration about the long waits at security.
A spokesperson for Dublin Airport has commented, stating that staff were trying to “ramp up” the service provided to travellers to alleviate the long wait times. They also stressed that returning to full capacity and smooth running after the disruptive pandemic would take time.
The spokesperson continued:
“As the recruitment, training and background security checks for all staff working at an international airport take several weeks, not days, we apologise in advance but queues for security will be experienced at peak hours.”
Passengers are encouraged by the Irish airport to check-in bags where they can, try and carry the minimum amount when passing through security, and arrive at the airport at least two hours before boarding a short-haul flight and three hours before boarding a long-haul flight.
The travel industry continues to recover
Many airports had to change structures and let staff go to cope financially with the pandemic and the lack of demand in the months when the globe slowly came in and out of lockdown and COVID-19 restrictions. It will take longer for airports to adapt to the growing numbers, much longer than it has taken for the public to feel ready to travel internationally often again.
Dublin Airport was one of many airports across the globe impacted by a loss of staff as a consequence of the pandemic. According to the airport’s spokesperson, “around 1,000 staff left Dublin Airport under a voluntary severance scheme because of the pandemic.”
Last week, we reported Manchester Airport’s struggles with huge queues which reportedly reached car parks outside terminals. It remains unclear how much time the aviation industry needs to recover entirely from the effects of the pandemic. While it is clear that passenger numbers are rising, staff and the systems in place for airports to cope with the growing numbers haven’t. Especially as the busy summer season approaches, many airports find themselves in a race against time to fix staffing issues.
Dublin Airport does run an ongoing recruitment drive in place to replace frontline staff in areas such as security and retail.
The spokesperson for Dublin Airport said that over 100 security staff had been recruited at the start of the year in an attempt to boost staff numbers to manage growing passenger numbers. While these staffs begin work, the spokesperson offered appreciation on behalf of the airport for patience and understanding while hard work continues to “restore customer service levels to 2019 levels.”
Are you travelling from Dublin Airport? Or have you experienced long wait times at security when travelling elsewhere? Let us know.
