More than 17.1 million passengers travelled through Dublin Airport last year. The figures, released today, mark an 8% increase on the previous year and has made 2004 the Airport's busiest year to date.
The main contributors to the growth in traffic were the European and North Atlantic routes. European traffic grew by an 13% with almost seven million passengers travelling in 2004. This growth was supported by the enlargement of the European Union during the year resulting in an increase of 10% in traffic to EU countries.
The airport first opened in 1940 when it saw just over 55,000 passengers travel through its doors. That figure almost trebled in three years while more than 162,000 passengers travelled through the airport 50 years ago.
In 1984, Dublin Airport saw 2½ million passengers pass through and in 1994, the numbers went as high as seven million.
The Director of Dublin Airport, Mr Robert Hilliard welcomed the increased figures.