A record-breaking summer at Dublin Airport continued in September with a total of 3,346,400 passengers passing through, which was +3.6% higher than in the same month in 2024. Every single day in September saw Dublin Airport welcome more than 100,000 passengers, with 18 days in the month seeing more than 110,000 passengers passing through, and six days coming in above 120,000.
September has now joined June, July and August as a peak summer month, with passenger numbers averaging 111,000 per day. Numbers travelling in the month were boosted by the successful staging of the first ever NFL match in Dublin, which saw Dublin Airport welcome upwards of 30,000 fans of the Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings from North America. The match was validation of the power of big events to help attract high net-worth tourists to Ireland from around the world.
September was a landmark month for Dublin Airport as it was finally able to remove the 100ml liquid limit at security, following the completion of the roll-out of new C3 scanners in both Terminal 1 and Terminal 2. The C3 rollout has involved a multi-million-euro investment by daa in Dublin Airport, with the works carried out over the busiest three years in the airport’s history.
daa’s relentless focus on improving standards for passengers at Dublin Airport – a 4-star Skytrax rated airport – continues to pay off with passenger satisfaction scores remaining at record high levels in September. Indeed, through the first nine months of 2025, the average rating given by departing passengers regarding their experience at Dublin Airport was 8.7 (out of 10) and 9.2 (out of 10) for arriving passengers.
daa CEO Kenny Jacobs said: “Passengers are loving the fact that they no longer need to remove liquids or electronics from their hand luggage when going through security screening and this is helping to make their experience at security even smoother and safer.”
“daa’s investment in the passenger product won’t stop there either, with work progressing on a doubling in size of the T1 Lounge, as well as a new and improved Fast Track facility in T1. Work is also underway on the fit-out of a new Irish bar, while a full renovation of the 51st and Green lounge in T2 has also just started.
“We also need to invest and build new infrastructure to ensure Dublin Airport can continue to cope with the passenger and airline demand that’s coming its way over the years ahead. We’re working hard behind the scenes to progress our Infrastructure and Operational planning applications, and we welcome the decision this week by the Cabinet to approve Minister Darragh O’Brien’s request to proceed with the drafting of legislation to remove Dublin Airport’s 32 million a year passenger cap.
“We hope this process can move swiftly to give Dublin Airport the ability to meet the strong and growing demand from passengers and airlines worldwide to fly in and out of our national gateway, safeguarding Ireland’s connectivity, jobs, tourism and wider economic growth,” said Jacobs.
