American carriers concerned about losing slots, possibilities for Alaska or Southwest to begin flights to Dublin

Airlines for America (A4A), a United States-based lobby group that includes some of the largest airlines in the country, has asked the Department of Transportation (DOT) to call a special meeting that would include the representatives of Ireland and the European Commission (EC), and take measures against Irish airlines over the potential threat of US airlines losing historic slots or being denied new services at Dublin Airport (DUB).

In a complaint filed with the DOT on January 6, 2026, A4A expressed concerns over the situation at DUB, namely that the Irish government has sought to impose a 32 million per year passenger cap at the airport, “which will result in the [withdrawal] of US carrier historic slots at DUB.”

“The only reason US carriers have not yet lost historic slots at DUB is because A4A, along with Aer Lingus and Ryanair, are challenging the passenger cap in the Irish High Court and successfully obtained a stay of the passenger cap while the legal challenge continues.”

While the Irish High Court issued a stay order in the matter in April 2025, it referred some questions related to the case to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). The three questions, which the CJEU has yet to rule on, first, ask whether a national authority, which determines slot allocation parameters at airports, can, essentially, use limits – in this case, the annual passenger cap – imposed by a planning authority, as a “relevant technical, operational or environmental constraint?”

If so, do the relevant EU regulations allow Member States to make decisions that would result in the loss of historic slots? Lastly, do slot regulations prevent airport management bodies “from taking unilateral action to close the airport for a period of time, for the purpose of preventing the operation of slots which have been allocated by the Airport Coordinator so as to avoid a breach of an annual limit of passengers […]?”

The association claimed that the answer to the first question, namely, whether a passenger cap is an external constraint that would allow authorities to limit capacity at an airport and result in the loss of historic slots, “is absolutely clear as a matter of law and policy […] no.” This rendered the other answers unnecessary, it said.

However, A4A warned that if the CJEU were to decide without considering the US-EU Air Transport Agreement (ATA), it could “viscerate fundamental rights under the ATA,” violating the International Air Transport Fair Competitive Practices Act (IATFCPA).

A4A used similar language to Ryanair when providing background about the issue to the DOT, saying that it has been “almost 12 months” since the current Irish government promised to introduce legislation to abolish the cap at DUB.

“In the event of an adverse CJEU decision, our Members are concerned that the Irish government will proceed with their plan to withdraw historic slots at DUB in violation of the EU slots regulation and the US-EU ATA.”

On January 5, 2026, Ryanair issued a statement that very harshly criticized the current Prime Minister (Taoiseach) of Ireland, Micheál Martin, whom the low-cost carrier nicknamed Marco Polo.

The airline claimed that Martin, who had more “overseas engagements than Elton John,” had failed to deliver on his party’s government program to remove the cap at DUB. A paper had been brought to the Cabinet in September 2025, yet the legislation to lift the 32 million passenger cap has not progressed forward, Ryanair pointed out.

“January marks a 12-month anniversary of his Programme for Govt, and still, despite a 20-seat majority, no action has been taken to scrap the Dublin Airport cap.”

Ryanair blasts Ireland’s government for ‘doing nothing’ to scrap passenger cap at Dublin Airport

Ryanair even nicknamed the Irish Prime Minister ‘Marco Polo’ because of his alleged keenness for travel.

The Engine CowlRytis Beresnevicius

Nevertheless, A4A stated that time “is of the essence,” and that the loss of historic slots at DUB, which is unavoidable if the cap remains in place, would violate the US-EU ATA and “would disproportionately and discriminately impact US carriers […].”

The association’s argument was that European and/or Irish airlines can sacrifice their European services to sustain or grow flights to the US, even if the only European carrier that has transatlantic flights from the Irish capital’s airport is Aer Lingus.

“Additionally, recent new entrants, such as JetBlue, and potentially other new entrants, such as Alaska and Southwest, will be even further disadvantaged as they will be prevented from adding new services and/or serving DUB altogether.”

According to A4A, JetBlue had already been denied additional slots at DUB for the winter 24/25 season, “and would likely be denied all slots for the next season after removal of the stay, effectively resulting in their expulsion from the airport.”

Furthermore, the airlines’ loss of historic slots would violate the EU’s slot regulations, with the US-based carriers that fly to DUB having been compliant with the use-or-lose-it rule.

A4A claimed that there has been no precedent of taking away historic slots when they are utilized at least 80% of the time.

“The permanent loss of slots at DUB, when there is no precedent or lawful basis for the withdrawal, constitutes an unjustifiable and unreasonable restriction in clear violation of IATCPFA.”

A4A concluded that the DOT can retaliate against Ireland since the country’s government has failed to introduce legislation that would remove the cap, resulting in the potential loss of historic slots at the airport, which would be “an unjustifiable or unreasonable discriminatory, predatory, or anticompetitive practice against US carriers […].”

The association requested the Department to call a special session related to the US-EU ATA that would include the representatives of Ireland and the EC, and “expeditiously issue an order to show cause providing that,” unless the passenger cap is removed by February 1, to curtail, suspend, or “be subject to other countervailing measures” the authority of any US-bound flights operated by Irish airlines.

So, Aer Lingus.

The 32 million cap at DUB has been in place since 2008, when the An Bord Pleanála approved the construction of Terminal 2 at the airport in August 2007, and then greenlit the expansion of Terminal 1 in January 2008.

While the stay order by the Irish High Court was a win for A4A, Aer Lingus, and Ryanair, the three plaintiffs who sued the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) and Airport Coordination Limited (ACL), DUB’s slot coordinator, capacity restrictions could still return.

On June 20, 2025, Fingal County Council, where DUB is located, warned daa, the operator of the airport, that it had not been compliant with the cap in 2023 and 2024, giving the company two years to comply with the 32 million passenger limit.

According to A4A, the case is now with the Irish High Court, with a hearing scheduled sometime in January.

Furthermore, in July 2025, the An Coimisiún Pleanála (ACP) capped the number of flights between 23:00 and 06:59 to 35,672 annually. There will also be a 16,260-per-year noise quota.

Ryanair sued the ACP in September 2025, calling it an “illegal second” cap at DUB, with the Irish low-cost carrier pointing out that the limit would “block early morning (pre-7 am) arrivals, which are vital for transatlantic landings between 05:00 and 07:00 [...].”

At the same time, when the IAA published its final decision on the arrival and departure limits from DUB for the summer 2026 season, the authority said that it had “not included any seasonal seat cap coordination parameter” or taken into account the 32 million per year passenger limit when determining the capacity parameters at DUB. The decision was in line with the Irish High Court’s ruling, the IAA added.

Some of A4A members include Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, and others. The US has other airline lobby groups, such as the Association of Value Airlines (AVA), which includes Allegiant Air, Avelo Airlines, Frontier Airlines, Spirit Airlines, and Sun Country Airlines, as well as the National Air Carrier Association (NACA), which mostly includes charter and/or cargo airlines like Atlas Air or Kalitta Air.