Gardaí have confirmed they are investigating a suspected arson attack on a number of homes used by Ryanair staff in north Dublin after fires were deliberately started outside the properties.
Emergency services were called to Fosterstown Place in Swords during the early hours of Tuesday, June 23, following reports of several incidents of criminal damage by fire.
According to Ryanair, wheelie bins were set alight and placed directly outside the front doors of properties occupied by the airline's employees.
The airline said seven homes were targeted in the incident, while reports suggest six properties suffered damage during what is being treated as a coordinated attack.
In a statement, Gardaí confirmed: "Gardaí and emergency services responded to a report of a number of incidents of criminal damage by fire at a domestic location in Swords Co. Dublin in the early hours of Tuesday 23rd June 2026."
They added: "The local fire service extinguished the fires. No injuries were reported at the time. Investigations are ongoing."
7 homes in Fosterstown, Swords used by Ryanair staff have been targeted in a suspected arson attack.
Wheelie bins were pulled in front of houses and set alight last night.
Ryanair has condemned what they call “a criminal arson attack” pic.twitter.com/B7yE5vT9C0
— Barry Whyte (@BarryWhyte85) June 23, 2026
Ryanair strongly condemned those responsible, describing the attack as a deliberate act targeting homes occupied by workers employed by the airline.
A spokesperson said: "Mindless idiots set fire to rubbish wheelie bins and placed them immediately in front of the doors of seven properties, which are rented and occupied by Ryanair's Irish and EU employees."
The airline thanked both An Garda Síochána and Dublin Fire Brigade for their quick response, saying the damage was largely limited to front doors and exterior areas of the homes.
Sources told local media that front doors, gutters and canopies were damaged in the fires, but no residents were injured.
The properties are located in a housing development close to Dublin Airport and are understood to be used by Ryanair staff working in inflight operations, engineering and the airline's Swords headquarters.
Back in 2024, Ryanair purchased 25 of the 28 homes in the Fosterstown Place development as part of an initiative aimed at providing affordable accommodation for newly recruited cabin crew based in Dublin.
At the time, the airline said the lack of affordable rental accommodation had become a significant challenge when recruiting and training new Irish and European staff.
A Ryanair spokesperson said the company was struggling to understand the motivation behind the attack.
"This was clearly a criminal attack on rental properties in the Swords area. The stupidity of these people is hard to comprehend when these properties are rented to hard-working Irish and EU young people who work for Ryanair Inflight, Engineering, and in our Swords Head Office and who pay their taxes here in the Irish State."
The spokesperson added that Ryanair was assisting Gardaí with their investigation and said employees had been left shaken by the incident.
"None of the properties suffered serious damage, and thankfully none of Ryanair's employees were harmed in any way, although some are understandably unnerved by this senseless arson attack on the homes of hard-working young people."
Investigators are now understood to be carrying out door-to-door enquiries in the area and examining any available CCTV footage as they work to identify those responsible.
No arrests have been announced and Garda investigations remain ongoing.
