*The IAA’s Shannon offices.
MORE THAN half the 727 staff employed at the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) last year received pay in excess of €100,000.
That is according to new figures contained in the IAA’s 2022 annual report which show that company revenues increased by €45m or 28pc to €207.5m as the authority continued its Covid-19 recovery.
The IAA employs substantial numbers of staff at its Shannon and Ballygirreen operations and pre-tax profits at the IAA increased marginally from €11.37m to €11.96m for 2022.
Numbers employed by the authority last year increased by 13 from 714 to 727 and numbers earning over €100,000 last year totalled 410 – representing 56pc of numbers employed.
The 410 earning over €100,000 is an increase of 108 on the 302 in that earning bracket in 2021. The rise is explained by a company-wide banded pay cut imposed in early 2021 in response to Covid-19 with full pay not restored until November 26th 2021.
The authority’s chief executive, Peter Kearney received a pay packet of €320,000 in 2022 – an increase on Mr Kearney’s 2021 pay packet of €292,000 which was impacted by the company wide salary cuts.
Mr Kearney’s 2022 remuneration was made up of salary of €225,000, €81,000 in pension contributions and €14,000 in ‘other taxable benefits’.
The figures show that one staff member received between €225,000 and €250,000; three staff members received €200,000 and €225,000, 14 received between €175,000 and €200,000; 53 received between €150,000 and €175,000; 186 received between €125,000 and €150,000 and 153 received between €100,000 and €125,000.
The authority’s overall staff costs increased from €87.4m to €100.6m. Pay to key management personnel totalled €2.1m.
The report shows that the IAA employs 291 air traffic controllers, 132 in safety regulation, 105 in operations, 86 engineers, 64 in corporate services and 49 radio officers.
The report discloses that on April 4th 2023, the board proposed a dividend for 2022 of €5.3 million and Mr Kearney states that it brings the total amount of dividends proposed since 2013 to €85.1 million.
The IAA’s costs last year include a payment of €8.2m to Met Éireann.
In her report, IAA chair, Rose Hynes stated that as air traffic activity returned, “the company was in a position to unwind its cost containment measures which had been a necessary feature of the previous two years. This resulted in an increase in costs across the Company”.
Ms Hynes stated that “2022 saw a welcome return of air traffic following two very difficult years”.
She said: “Overflights increased by 71% over 2021 levels to 321,800 flights while commercial domestic traffic handled at the State airports, Cork, Dublin and Shannon, increased by 142% to 237,500 movements. Flights on the North Atlantic increased by 74% to 457,300 flights. Overall, the number of flights handled by the IAA returned to, on average, 90% of 2019 levels.”
The main sources of IAA revenues last year arose from ‘en route’ at €129.7m, €28.88m for ‘terminal’ and €20.57m for North Atlantic communications.
The profit last year takes account of non-cash depreciation costs of €12.22m and a non-cash asset impairment of €4.7m.
At the end of December last, the authority had accumulated profits of €342.8m. The authority’s cash funds decreased from €116.66m to €113.04m.
