Dublin Airport receives a good number of complaints each year. But for the past two and a half years, over 90% of these complaints have come from the same, very angry person.
The past two years have seen a decrease in air traffic due to the pandemic, yet one Dublin resident still isn’t happy with their local airport. On the grounds of noise pollution, this complainant lodged 12,272 grievances in 2021.
For context, this averages out to 34 complaints a day.
How long have the complaints against Dublin Airport been going for?
2021 was not the first year Dublin Airport had faced staggering levels of complaints from this resident.
In 2020—a year when there was next to no air traffic—the DAA (those who deal with complaints against the airport) received 6,227 complaints from this same person.
Let’s compare those two years. In 2020, 6,227 complaints. In 2021, 12,272 complaints. That’s almost double, in the space of one year!
The increase in complaints is pretty mad when looked at on the page. But when you consider that, between 2020 and 2021, air traffic at Dublin Airport only increased by 10%, the level of complaints seems pretty insane.
How many complaints does Dublin Airport usually receive?
To get a sense of how intense the level of complaints from this single person is, you need to consider the normal level of complaints.
Before this particular complainant came onto the scene, the DAA was receiving around 1,500 complaints on average per year.
In comparison, last year saw a total of 13,569 complaints (if you remember, 12,272 of this total came from that one person). If you take out the single complainant, you’re left with just 1,269 complaints.
Who is the complainant?
While we don’t know the exact identity of the complainant, we do know they are likely a resident of Ongar, in North-West Dublin. Ongar is one of the areas under the flight path of many planes entering and exiting Dublin Airport.
Other complainants often live in similar areas, such as Portmarnock, St Margaret’s, Swords and the Ward.
How has Dublin Airport reacted?
While a spokesperson for DAA didn’t want to comment directly on the complainant themselves, they did have something to say about the criticism.
The spokesperson said:
“Dublin Airport is committed to working with the communities around the airport. This includes reducing aircraft noise on neighbouring communities, which is the joint responsibility of Dublin Airport, the Irish Aviation Authority and the airlines that use the airport.
There are a number of noise abatement measures in place and Dublin Airport is committed to working with the industry and other stakeholders to minimise the impact of noise on our neighbours and adjoining communities. DAA responds to each individual complainant regarding their complaint.”
Well, that must be a lot of work for the person responding to this complainant’s every individual complaint!
How many complaints have been received this year?
I know what you’re thinking. With such impressive numbers, is the complainant on track to improve them this year?
We’re only four months into 2022 currently, but already the complainant has racked up 5,276 complaints over the first three months.
That’s an average of 59 cases a day. So yes, the complainant is currently on track to beat last year’s record.
Planes might be bringing out the worst in this Dublin resident, but have you considered the worst being brought out in drivers on the road?
