WE’RE BACK ON THE FLIGHT PATH
Passengers leave Covid blues behind ... for a while
IT WAS a day of hope for the tens of thousands of passengers who travelled through Dublin Airport yesterday on their way to a well-deserved holiday.
Although quieter than in previous years, the airport had nearly 22,500 outbound passengers on the day when Ireland lifted travel restrictions on the fully vaccinated.
Face coverings could not hide the smiles of families dressed in shorts and colourful clothes, eager to leave their Covid concerns behind for just a few weeks.
Many who have not flown overseas for some time revelled in the novelty of pushing their big trolleys of luggage through to the check-in desks.
Teenagers, decked out in the latest summer styles, were seen taking a myriad of airport selfies.
However, passengers were aware that Ireland is set to be hotter this week than many of the most sought-after destinations, including Lanzarote, Tenerife and Lisbon. Others were frustrated
‘We are going to see our family’
that this country was weeks behind other EU member states that implemented the bloc’s Digital Covid Certificate on July 1.
But nevertheless, more than 150,000 people are expected to travel through Dublin Airport this week, with the Canaries, Costas and Balearics top of the list.
Yesterday’s passenger numbers are a 50% increase on the same day last week, but they are minuscule compared with the single-day figure of 116,162 passengers seen on July 19, 2019.
Among those heading off to Bordeaux in France was Mark Mills, from Letterkenny in Co. Donegal, along with his wife Isabelle and daughter, Kira.
He received his EU Digital Certificate in an email.
‘We just had to apply it to the Covid tracker so we now have it nice and easy on our phones,’ he said. ‘We are on our way to Bordeaux. We originally booked with Ryanair but that was cancelled.
‘We rebooked with Aer Lingus and that was cancelled as well and eventually got on to KLM to travel through Amsterdam and then on to France. It’s going to be great. We are going to see our family.’
Mr Mills, who has been working from home since the pandemic, said he has missed seeing family and friends. Isabelle received the EU certificate on Monday, a process she said was ‘very fast’.
Kira received a negative PCR test before she was allowed to travel.
‘The test isn’t pleasant but it was fast,’ she said.
Sisters Maya, Ciara and Sinead Olonargian travelled to Munich to visit family.
Maya said they had been looking forward to a holiday after a ‘boring’ six months in lockdown.
They received their EU Digital Certificates after undergoing PCR tests. Maya said: ‘I got my vaccination, but it was too late to travel on. There are too many people who want the vaccine but not enough supply.’
Dalton Philips, chief executive of the DAA, which operates Dublin Airport and Cork Airport, said that there is a ‘great buzz’ and air of excitement at airports throughout Ireland. He said: ‘We have been waiting patiently for international travel to resume and it is wonderful to see customers coming through the doors of our terminals again for leisure and business travel. We have missed our passengers, our airlines have missed them and our business partners have missed them. Covid-19 has had a crippling effect on every aspect of the travel and tourism sector. Dublin and Cork Airports have experienced a loss of over 43million passengers in the past 16 months.’
Passengers have been advised to arrive at the airport at least two hours in advance for European flights, and three hours in advance for US travel. It comes as nearly 80% of the country’s adult population have received a first dose of Covid-19 vaccine.
But Gerald Barry, assistant professor of virology in UCD, warned that overseas travel will inevitably lead to more Covid cases. He told RTÉ’s Today With Claire Byrne that he would love to be travelling again, but is concerned that mixed messaging is giving the impression that the pandemic is over.
‘Although I am very much in favour of moving towards an environment where we can live with this virus, it is concerning to give that message that the virus has gone away,’ he said.
Meanwhile, travellers coming here from other countries, including Britain, will not have to quarantine if they have valid proof that they are fully vaccinated or recovered from Covid-19.
Minister for Higher Education Simon Harris was asked about England’s so-called ‘freedom day’, where most legal restrictions have now been abolished, and whether the relaxation of travel from Britain to Ireland will be reviewed.
‘We will be constantly working with public health and assessing what is needed, but for today, we are saying if you are fully vaccinated or fully recovered, you can come here from the UK,’ he said.
‘We have missed our passengers’