Dublin Airport has been experiencing difficulties as airlines struggle to deal with staffing shortages due to Covid-related absences.
Speaking on Virgin Media's The Tonight Show on Monday, DAA CEO Dalton Philips said there is a huge amount of Covid in the industry at the moment.
He said: "Now we are seeing a huge amount of Covid going through the industry. You're seeing massive levels of flight cancellations. In fact, 88 flights in and out of Dublin have been cancelled in the last five days, that impacts about 13,000 people. Clearly, we can't control the airlines and the challenges they have around Covid, but from our side, from a security point of view, prudent planning."
READ MORE: Dublin Airport hits out at Virgin Media's The Tonight Show over redundancy comments
Mr Philips explained that should Covid impact more than 20 per cent of security staff in Dublin Airport, army personnel may have to be called on but emphasised that case numbers were nowhere near those levels currently.
He said: "Covid and that fifth wave is out there, and we felt that it would be prudent to engage with the defence forces and say look in the unlikely event that we had a Covid outbreak in our security operations, and I'm talking about more than 20 per cent of people being impacted and affected by Covid we would like to be able to turn to the defence forces.
"Now, we don't have that level of Covid or anywhere near it, but I think it's prudent.
"90 per cent of all flights in and out of this country are through Dublin Airport, and I think the public wouldn't thank us."
He added: "Our security teams have just done an outstanding job. They've all put their shoulder to the wheel, and as I said, the proposition has improved dramatically from what happened on the 29th of May.
"So the army was just prudent contingency in the event."
Mr Dalton said the airport is now running smoothly, with 93 per cent of passengers over the month of June getting through security in under 45 minutes and 77 per cent getting through in less than 30 minutes.
What happens if my flight is cancelled?
If your flight is cancelled for any reason, you are entitled to one of the following:
- Re-routing as soon as possible, subject to availability, free of charge.
- Re-routing at a later date.
- A full refund within seven days.
Airlines are also obliged to inform passengers of their options. This means if your flight is cancelled while you are already at the airport, staff should talk you through the various options.
Alternatively, you can check your airline's website and process your own refunds or bookings.
If your flight is cancelled and you choose to be re-routed as soon as possible, then you are entitled to meals and refreshments, hotel accommodation and transfers between the airport and hotel as required.
If the airline does not provide these, and you end up paying yourself, keep the receipts as you are entitled to reimbursement of reasonable expenses (i.e. not a five-star hotel).
However, if your flight is cancelled and you choose a full refund, this is all you will get.
Financial compensation will depend on the flight length and the reason for the cancellation.
This generally ranges from €250 for short-haul flights and up to €600 for long-haul flights.
The following can impact compensation rights.
- If you receive less than seven days' notice of cancellation and choose to be re-routed as soon as possible, you will not be entitled to compensation - provided your new flights depart within one hour of the original departure and land within two hours of the original arrival.
- If you receive between seven days and two weeks' notice of cancellation, provided you choose to be re-routed and are facilitated with a new flight that departs no more than two hours before the original departure time and arrives no more than four hours after the original arrival time, you are not entitled to compensation.
- If you receive two weeks or more notification, you will not be entitled to compensation provided that the airline offers full re-routing or refund options.
However, if the airline can prove the cancellation was due to extraordinary circumstances, you may not be entitled to compensation, but you are due a refund or re-routing.
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