The application seeks to raise the passenger cap to 40m a year with Daa saying the demand is already there for over 34m passengers a year.

Speaking at an event in Dublin, Daa chief executive Kenny Jacobs said he does not believe there is a quick fix to the passenger cap at Dublin Airport as they expect the planning application will take two to three years to get approval.

Mr Jacobs said Daa is “removing incentive schemes” and telling airlines “you should really think twice about applying for slots in Dublin”.

“We don’t control the passenger number,” he said. “That’s governed by the slot process that’s managed by the Irish Aviation Authority.”

Mr Jacobs added that airlines are likely considering legal action over slot allocation in a bid to add more capacity at Dublin Airport.

He said that Daa is considering putting in a second application to make the process move faster which could allow it to increase the passenger cap while the infrastructure plan goes through the regular process.

The operator also wants Dublin Airport to be classed as strategic infrastructure so the planning system around it can be taken out of Fingal County Council and instead moved to An Bord Pleanála.

However, adhering to the passenger cap could prove even more difficult this year for Daa.

During 2023, Daa said passenger traffic through Dublin Airport came in just under the cap with 31.9m passengers passing through the terminals but figures from the first three months of the year show passenger numbers already trending higher.

Between January and March, 6.8m passengers passed through the terminals at Dublin Airport which is over 2% higher compared to the same period last year. In addition, Dublin Airport is expecting to handle over 10m passengers during this summer.

Despite the cap being in place, the airlines and Daa have said that they don’t see the demand to increase routes to other regional airports such as Cork or Shannon due to Dublin being a hub airport and the primary tourist destination in Ireland.

Daa said it plans to grow traffic to Cork Airport, which it also operates, by 40% to over 5m passengers a year.

When asked how Daa plans to grow Cork Airport when there is limited interest even with the limit at Dublin Airport, Mr Jacobs said lower charges and better standards.

Among the plans for Cork Airport include knocking down the old terminal, which is no longer in use, adding a new mezzanine and a new lounge as well as new security machines.

Mr Jacobs added that the airlines will see the demand increase as the population in the south of the country increases.