Dublin Airport Apologises for Lengthy Weekend Delays

Dublin Airport has issued an apology following a weekend dogged by lengthy delays that resulted in some passengers missing their flights.

The delays were attributed by the airport to a shortage of security staff.

Passengers were left waiting in long queues to get through security procedures, with staff handing out bottles of water to beleaguered flyers.

The airport has advised travellers to check in their baggage where possible ahead of going through security screening to reduce waiting times. It also encouraged passengers "to be at the airport a minimum of two hours before boarding a short-haul flight and three hours prior to boarding a long-haul flight."

"Unfortunately, some passengers experienced long delays at Dublin Airport this weekend," the airport wrote in a statement. "We apologise to passengers impacted. Like other airports all over Europe, we are currently working extremely hard to ramp up our operation at Dublin Airport after the collapse of international travel over the past two years, including the hiring and training of staff."

The airport said that unfortunately such delays are expected to continue into the coming weeks.

Over 100 security staff have been recruited but have yet to be deployed due to new background checks introduced on January 1st.

"Because of the Covid pandemic, around 1,000 staff left Dublin Airport under a voluntary severance scheme and while there is an ongoing recruitment drive to replace frontline staff in areas such as security and retail, all companies who operate at airports across Europe are experiencing similar challenges as we approach the start of the busy summer season ahead," the statement read.