Aer Lingus Regional (Aer Arann) BRS-DUB
My wife and I tried out this new service this week and found it a decent experience.
Ryanair would have been about £15-20 cheaper in total for the two of us, taking into account all the extras including one checked bag in each direction, for flight times that are broadly similar (a couple of hours later in the return timings with Ryanair).
The outbound morning flight on Monday was on an Aer Arann ATR 72 in Aer Lingus Regional livery which left more or less on time and arrived at Dublin about twenty minutes ahead of schedule. It was pleasant to stroll out to the aircraft with seats already allocated (we didn't pay to pre-book seats but were seated together).
BRS was also a pleasant experience, after one or two not quite so good ones with departure lounge overcrowding and slow security in recent years, but security was transited this time in about seven minutes despite being in the morning rush with around 25 departures in the first three hours of the day. Is there also more public seating in the departure lounge too? Maybe the airport management has listened to complaints?
Back to the flight, there were, I think, 47 passengers in total which is perhaps not too bad at all for a new route and with the established Ryanair also departing to DUB just ten minutes ahead.
The return on Thursday evening carried 37 passengers and was operated by an Aer Arann ATR 42 in the airline's own livery. This aircraft has seen better days with seat-back tables missing from many seats, some of which were on their last legs.
Nevertheless, we landed at Bristol twenty minutes ahead of schedule and the experience was perfecly acceptable in our view, especially the leisurely walk to the bus and ride to the aircraft at DUB without the anticipation of a scramble for seats - though I can see that ordering a drink would have been problematical with no table but on such a short flight that wasn't a consideration for us.
I must specially mention the lone cabin crew member who is an excellent ambassador for her airline. She was friendly and hard-working with a ready smile. We were particularly impressed because as we entered the cabin she told us our allocated seats in the back row had limited leg room and she would move us to an empty pair further along the cabin. We had no idea there were such discrepancies in leg room on this aircraft and regard the lady's action as service often not found in today's society, and not just in aviation. I shall email our appreciation of her customer service to the airline.
If we go to Dublin again from BRS we shall use Aer Lingus Regional. I know that Ryanair does what it says on the tin and carries hundreds of thousands of customers on the route each year and will no doubt continue to do so.
However, the Aer Lingus Regional product suits us better.