Aer Lingus - 5
Join Date: May 2005
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DXB was badly timed and badly marketed, EK and EY do great to the UAE but the majority of their traffic is connections. O/D DUB-DXB/AUH is crap no significant market there espeicially with todays oil prices.
EI and DUB-DXB is dead!
EI and DUB-DXB is dead!
Join Date: Feb 2006
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Aer Lingus in Flightcrew crisis
In the last 2 days Aer Lingus has hired in 2 MD11s, 1 DC10 and 1 L1011, why?
Because the man with the plan decided to cancel A330 conversion courses as he thought he didn't need the crews.
Peak summer now - not enought crews, no leave available.
He'll still probably get another 6 figure bonus like he did last year, but in the meantime we must minimise fuel carraige and don't put your wife in an empty seat in premier that's for managers only.
Pennywise, poundfoolish, pissup and brewery come to mind.
Because the man with the plan decided to cancel A330 conversion courses as he thought he didn't need the crews.
Peak summer now - not enought crews, no leave available.
He'll still probably get another 6 figure bonus like he did last year, but in the meantime we must minimise fuel carraige and don't put your wife in an empty seat in premier that's for managers only.
Pennywise, poundfoolish, pissup and brewery come to mind.
Join Date: Sep 2007
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Went with EI at the start of July to New York from Dublin have to say more or less everything was extremely dissapointing in comparison to Aer Lingus shorthaul which has always been a very good experience! The long haul cabin crew on those particular flights really need to open their eyes to customer service and wise up! EI long haul in general appears to be a mess.....rant over
Join Date: Sep 2007
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Sorry to slag you guys off, but EI long haul is far behind EI short haul with regards to customer service, if you take away the free meal and movie then it seems like your going to JFK with RYR! Short haul flights with EI really are the bees knees but long haul unfortunatly is far from!
Join Date: May 1999
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Apaddy - maybe so
Hi Apaddy,
Take your point on mixed flying. However, like the previous post. Personally I no longer fly EI transatlantic, now choose to fly BA, DL, VS, CO. Key reason, my day is gone flying anyways, so I might as well be comfortable. DL's a/c can often be older, but for some reason feel more comfortable, the crew often are somewhat more senior in years, but again have a nice way about them.
I've had 42 crossings of the Atlantic in the last couple of years and have 6 more before December 08. On the other hand, within Europe I'll fly no one but EI. The whole experience is usually excellent. The A320's have more room or at least feel to have, the automated check-in, and it simply feels right. The fares are usually close enough to FR.
EI's T/a product needs to be brought upto speed. One of my clients recently commented "BA - thanks for the tip off, a touch above the others", a family on a round the world ticket, who also flew QF and EI. And we all know what alot of people in here think of BA.
Rant over. Would love to see EI bring up it's service TA, what about premium economy?
Cheerio
Shamrogue
Take your point on mixed flying. However, like the previous post. Personally I no longer fly EI transatlantic, now choose to fly BA, DL, VS, CO. Key reason, my day is gone flying anyways, so I might as well be comfortable. DL's a/c can often be older, but for some reason feel more comfortable, the crew often are somewhat more senior in years, but again have a nice way about them.
I've had 42 crossings of the Atlantic in the last couple of years and have 6 more before December 08. On the other hand, within Europe I'll fly no one but EI. The whole experience is usually excellent. The A320's have more room or at least feel to have, the automated check-in, and it simply feels right. The fares are usually close enough to FR.
EI's T/a product needs to be brought upto speed. One of my clients recently commented "BA - thanks for the tip off, a touch above the others", a family on a round the world ticket, who also flew QF and EI. And we all know what alot of people in here think of BA.
Rant over. Would love to see EI bring up it's service TA, what about premium economy?
Cheerio
Shamrogue
I think Aer Lingus are refitting 3 of its A330s this winter with new seats and video on demand in Premier and economy. This, combined with 2 new aircraft by this time next year should make a big difference to the product.I believe they also carry a lot of transfer traffic through Dublin on to europe, so hopefully things will improve greatly soon.
Join Date: Oct 2006
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Cork - Lisbon a new route according to theairdb.com.
On the transatlantic service front, yeah I think the plan is to have the service - as in seat back tvs, etc. - standardised by mid next year. The problem is more with the cabin crew service though, my impression is that work practices haven't made the move from stated-owned to private along with (a lot of!) the rest of the company. For example only providing one drinks service on transatlantic flights makes no comercial sense when alcohol is not being provided free of charge. I can only assume some union-brokered work practices are responsible for this rather than no desire to maximise revenue during a challenging period for airlines!
I agree that their short haul service is very good so it is a pity, for whatever reason, that they aren't providing the same on long haul.
On the transatlantic service front, yeah I think the plan is to have the service - as in seat back tvs, etc. - standardised by mid next year. The problem is more with the cabin crew service though, my impression is that work practices haven't made the move from stated-owned to private along with (a lot of!) the rest of the company. For example only providing one drinks service on transatlantic flights makes no comercial sense when alcohol is not being provided free of charge. I can only assume some union-brokered work practices are responsible for this rather than no desire to maximise revenue during a challenging period for airlines!
I agree that their short haul service is very good so it is a pity, for whatever reason, that they aren't providing the same on long haul.
Join Date: Jun 2004
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Well as a crew member for BA I am all to well aware of the problems EI are facing with their product on the atlantic but I must also admit that the fares are indeed very very good plus the benefits from some flights using US immigration in Ireland prior to departure all trump up the lack lustre onboard product.
I personally tend to find the crew in Aer Lingus by and large to be friendly and professional, especially the pre 9/11 crew who have been with the company since the old pre-loco days. Unfortunately I have noticed a decrease in the standards of those now hired as crew and sadly I am finding the eastern european crew to be far more superior to the Irish crew hired in recent years which is a bit of a disappointment as I would expect the Irish crew to be leading the way on board their airline. Although hats off to the Eastern Europeans for generally being so good
.
As for the onboard atlantic product there are some aspects which are regularly over looked. On their West Coast services you get THREE services down the back which constitutes as two hot meals and a mid flight snack. On BA on the same flight which is actually a little bit longer all you get is a meal after take off and a box with a sandwich prior to landing! The Premier product on Aer Lingus minus the seat is far superior to that of Club World imho. The delivery of the service, the standard of the food and the choice exceptional and all this despite the fares being significantly less the Club World.
The only thing that really makes BA stand out that bit more is perhaps the AVOD (only on the 767 and 747 and ONE 777 at the mo) however look at the interiors of the new EI 330's and to be honest, the time wont be long before EI have a very appeasing cabin interior!
I personally tend to find the crew in Aer Lingus by and large to be friendly and professional, especially the pre 9/11 crew who have been with the company since the old pre-loco days. Unfortunately I have noticed a decrease in the standards of those now hired as crew and sadly I am finding the eastern european crew to be far more superior to the Irish crew hired in recent years which is a bit of a disappointment as I would expect the Irish crew to be leading the way on board their airline. Although hats off to the Eastern Europeans for generally being so good
.As for the onboard atlantic product there are some aspects which are regularly over looked. On their West Coast services you get THREE services down the back which constitutes as two hot meals and a mid flight snack. On BA on the same flight which is actually a little bit longer all you get is a meal after take off and a box with a sandwich prior to landing! The Premier product on Aer Lingus minus the seat is far superior to that of Club World imho. The delivery of the service, the standard of the food and the choice exceptional and all this despite the fares being significantly less the Club World.
The only thing that really makes BA stand out that bit more is perhaps the AVOD (only on the 767 and 747 and ONE 777 at the mo) however look at the interiors of the new EI 330's and to be honest, the time wont be long before EI have a very appeasing cabin interior!
Join Date: Jan 2006
Location: Solihull
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Aer Lingus Scottish Base?
Link would not open or format this post correctly this morning.However UK airport news is reporting that Aer Lingus isconsidering opening a Scottish base but there is no timelimits given but it would be based on the Belfast model. So this would be the EDI with an easyjet base and very shortly Ryanair or GLA with easyjet and FR up the roadat PIK? Am I missing something here?If GLA was such a goldmine wouldn't easyjet have more based aircraft? I know the current range of destinations from GLA is limited and there would be some opportunities but some have been tried before and failed, so why does EI think they can fill 174 seats?Any ideas of other potential bases in the UK? Manchester springs to mind if they get in fast before easyjet get a foothold or FR move in. Other than that..........PeteThird attempt at formatting this post!
Last edited by OltonPete; 16th Aug 2008 at 09:46. Reason: Link did not open
Fit like min?
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Aer Lingus Scottish Base
Would they consider Aberdeen, given that we are described by recent news reports as "The City The Credit Crunch Forgot" 
(Load of old twaddle!!)
Don't think EI have ever operated schedules here though. Or would they indeed only be looking at the Central Belt, where the populaton is.
Must go service my Bentley!!
(Load of old twaddle!!)
Don't think EI have ever operated schedules here though. Or would they indeed only be looking at the Central Belt, where the populaton is.
Must go service my Bentley!!
Join Date: Jul 2006
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My money is on Glasgow (no FR) and Easyjet routes like:
Faro
Malaga
Alicante
Paris
Geneva
They'd compete with FlyGlobespan on Barcelona, BA would pull Heathrow leaving EI to compete with BMI and the only new routes they'd introduce would be Nice and Rome.
Aer lingus strategists seem stoo-pid to me.
Of course, I think they could make a go off Glasgow if the introduce non-competing routes like:
Faro
Malaga
Alicante
Paris
Geneva
They'd compete with FlyGlobespan on Barcelona, BA would pull Heathrow leaving EI to compete with BMI and the only new routes they'd introduce would be Nice and Rome.
Aer lingus strategists seem stoo-pid to me.
Of course, I think they could make a go off Glasgow if the introduce non-competing routes like:
- Nice
- Rome
- Brussels
- Milan
- Prague
- Krakow
- Warsaw
- Madrid
- Lisbon
Join Date: Apr 2006
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I think the refits of the 330 cabins will make a big difference to how the service etc feels, as pax wqith a screen in front of them entertaining them, are less likely to notice short-commings in service.
There is already a fair amount of pax connecting through Dublin to/from the US, so with a better service and the new Terminal in Dublin coming soon, hopefully EI can attract more connecting pax!
EI only do one bar service on long-haul flights, but thats down to the number of crew we have on those flights.
Premier's food and service is excellent, but the seats and entertainment really let it down. Once the cabins are re-fitted, it will make such a difference. Hopefully then, EI can attract pax from the UK in Premier, rather than them fly via LHR etc
I'd like to see an EI base in GLA or EDI! I'm sure AGP, BCN and FAO will be routes from the new base, but the previous post that EI will start LHR from the new base is untrue, as they dont have the slots. ORK-LIS is starting, and EI have BFS-MUC, MXP and tried BUD, so i'm sure a few of these routes will appear from the new base!
There is already a fair amount of pax connecting through Dublin to/from the US, so with a better service and the new Terminal in Dublin coming soon, hopefully EI can attract more connecting pax!
EI only do one bar service on long-haul flights, but thats down to the number of crew we have on those flights.
Premier's food and service is excellent, but the seats and entertainment really let it down. Once the cabins are re-fitted, it will make such a difference. Hopefully then, EI can attract pax from the UK in Premier, rather than them fly via LHR etc
I'd like to see an EI base in GLA or EDI! I'm sure AGP, BCN and FAO will be routes from the new base, but the previous post that EI will start LHR from the new base is untrue, as they dont have the slots. ORK-LIS is starting, and EI have BFS-MUC, MXP and tried BUD, so i'm sure a few of these routes will appear from the new base!
Last edited by johnrizzo2000; 16th Aug 2008 at 15:27.
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"Would love to see EI bring up it's service TA, what about premium economy?"
They have it already ....its called Premier. Until such time as the seats and entertainment systems are upgraded to something better than the type they have now (which incidently were dumped by VS about 5 years ago)Then they really have a cheek to call it Business/Club/J class
They have it already ....its called Premier. Until such time as the seats and entertainment systems are upgraded to something better than the type they have now (which incidently were dumped by VS about 5 years ago)Then they really have a cheek to call it Business/Club/J class
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Beamwidth,
No disrespect but what airline have you been flying?
The new Premier seats are pretty much the bog standard across the vast majority of airlines that currently provide a business cabin. In fact I would say that the seats are better then some you may find on EK or many US carriers and they are angled lie flat ( Aer Lingus - Premier Class - Seat Demonstration ). You must remember that lie flat seats are still relatively rare amongst small/medium sized airlines. Indeed the older Premier seat which is gradually being phased out could be likened to a Premium Economy seat it still provides about 100% more space then any premium economy product out there and enough comfort to sleep and rest on a flight up to ten hours which is all that EI really needs.
As for the IFE, The AVOD system currently installed on DUZ/DUO is a brand new top of the range system produced long after VS installed their latest system. This system is also to be extended to the rest of the fleet (albeit two of the older 330's which are to be returned to lessors). The only other aircraft with PTV's is DAA which has the same system which BA use albeit without the upgrade to AVOD which BA is currently in the process of installing throughout its fleet until a new generation system is introduced with its new orders!
So all in all, I think you need to get your facts up to scratch. Indeed the service does need improvement but I also think that EI gets a lot of flack for nothing!
No disrespect but what airline have you been flying?
The new Premier seats are pretty much the bog standard across the vast majority of airlines that currently provide a business cabin. In fact I would say that the seats are better then some you may find on EK or many US carriers and they are angled lie flat ( Aer Lingus - Premier Class - Seat Demonstration ). You must remember that lie flat seats are still relatively rare amongst small/medium sized airlines. Indeed the older Premier seat which is gradually being phased out could be likened to a Premium Economy seat it still provides about 100% more space then any premium economy product out there and enough comfort to sleep and rest on a flight up to ten hours which is all that EI really needs.
As for the IFE, The AVOD system currently installed on DUZ/DUO is a brand new top of the range system produced long after VS installed their latest system. This system is also to be extended to the rest of the fleet (albeit two of the older 330's which are to be returned to lessors). The only other aircraft with PTV's is DAA which has the same system which BA use albeit without the upgrade to AVOD which BA is currently in the process of installing throughout its fleet until a new generation system is introduced with its new orders!
So all in all, I think you need to get your facts up to scratch. Indeed the service does need improvement but I also think that EI gets a lot of flack for nothing!
There was a Titan BAe 146 operating today out of DUB (16th Aug) for EI, callsign Shamrock 1402. Was it filling in for something tech or has the long haul flight crew problem hit the short haul fleet too?
JAS
JAS