Aer Rianta
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| Public | |
| Founded | 1937 (as Aer Rianta Teoranta) |
| Headquarters |
Dublin Airport, Ireland |
| Website | http://www.daa.ie/ |
DAA (styled "daa"), previously Dublin Airport Authority, is a commercial semi-state airport company in Ireland. The company owns and operates Dublin Airport and Cork Airport. Its other subsidiaries include the travel retail business Aer Rianta International and DAA International.
DAA previously owned and operated Shannon Airport before Shannon Airport became a separate state-owned airport at the end of 2012. The company also owned Great Southern Hotels, which had nine sites throughout the island of Ireland, until its sale in 2006. DAA's head office is located in the original passenger terminal on the grounds of Dublin Airport.
Aer Rianta was founded in 1937 as Aer Rianta Teoranta and the name is derived from the Irish language for "air ways" or "air tracks"; Teoranta is the Irish word for Limited. Aer Rianta was to serve as a holding company for the national airline and to promote aviation generally.
In 1947, Aer Rianta started the duty-free shop concept in the Shannon Airport and are credited with the invention of duty-free shops in airports. Aer Rianta was the principal shareholder of Aer Lingus during the airline's early days, until 1966.
Aer Rianta had control of Dublin Airport from its start although this was not formally or legally recognised until the passage of the Air Navigation and Transport Act of 1950. During the 1950s and 1960s, the Airport Manager at Dublin Airport, who was officially an employee of Aer Rianta, was also part of the Aer Lingus management team and reported to the Assistant General Manager of that company. In 1954, Prof. Patrick Lynch was appointed chairman of Aer Rianta at the young age of 38, taking on the task of turning the £60,000 deficit of the companies into a profit. He was chairman for 21 years to 1975, and retired from that position at his own request to the Government of the day. It was during this time that the Department of Transport and Power turned its attention to the long-term organisation of the three state airports. Due to the increasing complexity and costs associated with managing airports, and also due in no small part to the growth of non-aviation services (most notably duty-free sales), the need was felt in Ireland to establish one independent operation to manage Ireland's airports.
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