Aviation History
Irish civil aviation formally began in 1936 with the founding of Aer Lingus, which flew its inaugural Dublin-Bristol service that May. Shannon Airport, developed on Ireland's west coast in the late 1930s and 1940s, became a vital transatlantic refuelling stop after the Second World War and, in 1947, hosted the world's first duty-free shop, an Irish innovation later copied globally. State-owned Aer Lingus grew into Ireland's transatlantic flag carrier from the late 1950s, while Dublin separately emerged as a global centre of aircraft leasing following the 1975 founding of Guinness Peat Aviation. From the mid-1980s, the founding of Ryanair introduced low-cost aviation to Europe, and following EU market liberalisation in the 1990s it grew into one of the continent's largest airlines. Aer Lingus itself was acquired by International Airlines Group in 2015.
Ireland's national airline was established and flew its first scheduled service between Dublin and Bristol.
Following runway extensions after WWII, Shannon Airport became a key refuelling and stopover point for early transatlantic flights.
The Customs Free Airport Act established Shannon as the world's first duty-free airport, an Irish innovation later adopted worldwide.
Aer Lingus began scheduled transatlantic flights to New York, extending Ireland's aviation reach across the Atlantic.
The founding of GPA in Dublin helped establish Ireland as a global hub for commercial aircraft leasing.
Ryanair was established, later pioneering the low-cost airline model in Europe from the early 1990s.
European single-market aviation deregulation allowed Ryanair and other Irish carriers to expand rapidly across the continent.
International Airlines Group completed its acquisition of Aer Lingus, bringing Ireland's flag carrier under the parent of British Airways and Iberia.
Aer Lingus · Ryanair · CityJet · Aer Arann (Stobart Air)
Compiled from general public/encyclopedic sources (Wikipedia, Aer Lingus and Shannon Airport histories); passenger-volume rankings for Ryanair can shift year to year.
Aviation Firsts
Casement Aerodrome (Baldonnel) — Baldonnel, Co. Dublin (1917): Laid out by the Royal Flying Corps in 1917; civilian flights from 1919. Ireland's oldest documented airfield; Aer Lingus's very first flight (27 May 1936) departed from here, before Dublin Airport existed. Today the sole airfield and HQ of the Irish Air Corps (military). · Wikipedia ↗
Dublin Airport — Collinstown, Dublin (1940): Site chosen 1917-1919 (same RFC-era origin as Baldonnel's area), redeveloped as a dedicated civil airport from 1937, opened 19 Jan 1940 — built specifically to replace Baldonnel as Dublin's civil airport once Aer Lingus needed a civilian base. Today Ireland's busiest airport (36.4M passengers, 2025) and main Aer Lingus hub. · DUB ↗ · Wikipedia ↗
Baldonnel/Casement is the older airfield by date and the site of Ireland's first scheduled civil flight, but it has always been military; Dublin Airport is the oldest purpose-built civil airport and the one in everyday public use.
Aer Lingus (1936): Founded 15 Apr 1936 (registered as an airline 22 May 1936); first service 27 May 1936, Baldonnel-Bristol. No earlier Irish airline was found in the sources checked. · EI ↗ · Wikipedia ↗
Servisair (United Kingdom): UK-headquartered (Runcorn/Manchester); began serving airlines at Dublin Airport in 1995. The earliest dated foreign ground-handling entry found for Ireland — no source explicitly states Servisair was 'the first' foreign GH company in Ireland, just the earliest documented date. Swissport (Swiss-headquartered) acquired Servisair in 2013 and has operated the Dublin business continuously since. (best-documented candidate found — not source-confirmed as literally first.) · Swissport ↗