Dublin Airport

When you think of Dublin, you think of Ryanair. That is true, but it is only half the story. Ireland’s largest airport is also the hub of Aer Lingus, a springboard across the Atlantic and one of the few places in Europe where passengers clear US immigration before they even depart. For you as a spotter, that means lots of Boeing 737s in Ryanair blue, plus green shamrock tails and, during the day, a string of widebody jets to North America and the Gulf. There is no official deck. That is why it pays to know in advance how runways, wind and light work together.

From airfield to capital airport

The history of the site begins in the First World War. At Collinstown, north of Dublin, the British Royal Flying Corps set up a base from 1917. The young Irish state did not build the civilian airport until the late 1930s. On January 19, 1940, the first scheduled flight took off, bound for Liverpool. Shortly afterward, the terminal building by architect Desmond FitzGerald entered service. With its curved, stepped shape, it resembles a ship. The building is now a protected landmark.

After that, the airport grew step by step: Terminal 1 arrived in 1972, today’s main runway with a new air traffic control center in 1989, Terminal 2 in 2010. The biggest leap so far came in 2022, when a second parallel runway and a new control tower entered service. At just under 87 meters, the tower is considered the tallest occupied structure in Ireland.

Three runways, two of them parallel

For spotters, the layout is easy to grasp. The main runway 10R/28L runs east–west, south of the new north runway and north of the terminals. About 1.7 kilometers farther north lies the north runway 10L/28R, which at 3,110 meters is the airport’s longest. The old runway 11/29 had to make way for it; it was closed as early as 2007 and used as a parking area afterward. Crossing them is runway 16/34, which is used mainly in strong crosswinds.

How air traffic control distributes the runways in detail depends on wind, time of day and traffic. The most reliable answer comes from a look at a flight tracker just before you set off. How that works is explained in the article on flight tracking with ADS-B; the basics of runway numbers are covered in runway designations at airports.

Runway direction in use: 28 or 10?

Aircraft take off and land into the wind. In Ireland it often comes from the west. Then movements run toward 28: aircraft arrive from the east, that is, from the Irish Sea, and depart to the west over the interior. When the wind swings to the east, runway direction 10 is in use, and the picture reverses. Because the spotting positions are at the runway ends, the runway direction in use decides whether you are standing at the right end or the wrong one.

So check the wind and runway direction before you set off. How to read wind information from METARs and TAFs and derive the active runway from it is explained in the articles Understanding the runway direction in use at airports and Reading METARs and TAFs.

Aer Lingus: the green hub

At Terminal 2, the green of Aer Lingus dominates. The Irish airline has belonged to the International Airlines Group since 2015 and uses Dublin as a hub between Europe and North America. On short- and medium-haul routes, it flies A320-family jets such as the Airbus A320. Across the Atlantic, it deploys widebody aircraft of the Airbus A330 type, plus long-range versions of the A321neo. With the narrowbody jets, Aer Lingus also reaches North American destinations for which a widebody would be too big.

For short routes, mainly to Great Britain, there is the Aer Lingus Regional brand. Its turboprops such as the ATR 72-600 are so far flown by the partner Emerald Airlines. The partnership has changed several times in recent years – when spotting, look at the registration and the operator instead of relying only on the livery.

Ryanair: the home base

Just a few kilometers from the terminal sits the group headquarters of Ryanair. Dublin is a home base and one of the largest bases in the entire route network. Passengers are processed in Terminal 1, mainly at Pier D, which was built specifically for low-cost traffic. Over the course of a day, you see dozens of aircraft in blue and yellow here: older Boeing 737-800s and the newer jets of the 737 MAX 8 family, which Ryanair operates in a version with extra seats.

For collectors, Dublin is therefore a good address for picking up lots of Ryanair registrations in a short time. Since all aircraft look the same, the registration is the only way to tell your sightings apart. Most Ryanair aircraft carry Irish registrations with the prefix EI. How registrations are structured is explained in the articles on aircraft registrations and country codes.

Transatlantic traffic and US preclearance

What sets Dublin apart from many airports of the same size is the traffic to North America. In Terminal 2, US Customs and Border Protection operates a preclearance facility: if you fly nonstop to the USA, you go through immigration and customs in Dublin and arrive on the other side like a domestic passenger. In Europe, this exists elsewhere only in Shannon on the Irish west coast. That makes Dublin attractive for connecting passengers from Great Britain and Europe – and brings lots of widebody jets.

Besides Aer Lingus, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and JetBlue fly to Dublin, some of them only seasonally. Typical types include the Boeing 787 or the Boeing 767; which aircraft flies which route changes with every schedule. From the Gulf come Emirates and Qatar Airways, whose widebody jets, such as the Boeing 777-300ER, are also among the highlights of a spotting day.

Who else lands in Dublin

The list of airlines is long and strongly British and European. The busiest route leads to London Heathrow, where British Airways and Aer Lingus fly several times a day. Amsterdam and Manchester follow. From Germany comes Lufthansa, among others, plus carriers such as Vueling, Iberia Express, Turkish Airlines and SAS.

In Dublin, cargo travels mainly in the bellies of passenger aircraft, especially on the transatlantic routes. In 2024, that added up to around 172,000 metric tons. Dedicated freighters show up too, but less often than at major cargo hubs. Tips on how to catch them anyway are in the article Recognizing freighters.

Spotting without a deck: where you can stand

Dublin does not offer an official observation deck or a viewing park like the Runway Visitor Park in Manchester. The spotter scene uses publicly accessible spots around the grounds instead. The main groups at a glance:

• South side of the main runway (28L): At the approach lights of 28L, about a fifteen-minute walk from the terminal, and on a small mound of earth by a parking lot a little farther along the fence, you see landings on 28L and aircraft taxiing up for takeoff. The light works from late morning until late afternoon, almost all day in winter. The route there partly follows a road with fast traffic – be careful.
• Parking lot access roads at the Blue Car Park: At the access roads to this long-stay parking lot near the R108, you have a good view of takeoffs from 28L and operations on 10R. Overgrown embankments restrict the view depending on the season.
• Around the north runway: Along the R108 north of the north runway, there are lay-bys and access roads with a view of 10L/28R. This is where the heavy departures to the west really stand out. However, you are shooting into the light; it works mainly on summer mornings and evenings.
• Approach 28 in the east: Commercial parking providers on the Swords Road lie under the approach to the 28 runways. Pedestrians can sometimes get there, but parking usually requires a longer booking.

All of these spots are simple roadside locations: no roof, no restrooms, no kiosk. You bring water, food and rain protection yourself. The descriptions here are based on spotter reports and can change at any time because of construction work, vegetation or new barriers.

Getting there and night rules

There is no rail connection to the airport yet. Express buses such as Dublin Express and Aircoach run from the city center, as do several Dublin Bus routes; depending on traffic, you need half an hour or longer. The MetroLink subway line received planning permission in 2025, but it will be years before it opens. For the spots along the fence, a rental car is the most convenient solution.

Fixed rules apply at night. Between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m., the north runway stays closed to takeoffs and landings, and night traffic runs over the main runway. For night movements, the planning authority set an annual cap in 2025; the European Commission assessed this rule in February 2026 as incompatible with EU law. What happens next is open – for night shots, though, you are best off setting up for the main runway anyway.

Overall capacity is also a perennial topic. Since 2007, a planning condition has limited the airport to 32 million passengers a year. The actual numbers are now above that, and in 2026 the Irish legislature is dealing with a statutory new rule for the limit. For you as a spotter, that changes little: the airport is full, and that means lots of traffic.

Dublin compared

In the network of Irish and British airports, Dublin is Ireland’s central hub. The most-flown route leads to London Heathrow, and anyone spotting there sees Aer Lingus and British Airways again – at Myrtle Avenue, right on final approach. If you are planning a trip with several European hubs, you find more destinations in the article Best spotting spots in Europe.

From a German perspective, Dublin is a compact destination for a long weekend. From Frankfurt Airport and many other German airports, you can fly there directly – often with Aer Lingus or Ryanair, so with exactly the airlines you photograph on site. Go through the gear checklist and take a look at plane spotting in bad weather – in Ireland, both are worthwhile.

Conclusion

Dublin Airport is not a comfortable spotting airport, but a rewarding one. Two home airlines provide dense traffic, US preclearance brings widebody jets from North America, and Emirates and Qatar Airways add arrivals from the Gulf. Since 2022, the north runway has offered additional subjects, especially for heavy departures toward the west.

What is missing is an official platform. Instead, you stand at several public spots close to the runway ends. With a rental car, a rain jacket and an eye on wind and light, you get a lot out of a day in Dublin.