Aer Lingus and Asia
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Aer Lingus and Asia
Allo
I am just wondering why Aer Lingus doesnt do flights to asia? I dont think any one else does flights to asia from Dublin? Do you think there would be enough people wanting to go to dublin straight from asia? I travel on the kangaroo routes to dublin sometimes and just wondered why Aer Lingus doesnt operate to asia.
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I am just wondering why Aer Lingus doesnt do flights to asia? I dont think any one else does flights to asia from Dublin? Do you think there would be enough people wanting to go to dublin straight from asia? I travel on the kangaroo routes to dublin sometimes and just wondered why Aer Lingus doesnt operate to asia.
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This is an issue I have pursued for some time; it may not be EI which brings about a direct route, but there is certainly recognition in government circles of the need - and the market.
There are two aspects here: firstly, is there a market? Yes, but one of the problems Ireland faces is that most of its traffic to/from Asia is through LHR/AMS etc, and it's therefore subject to capacity on those routes. If they're particularly busy, it can affect the accessibility of Ireland which affects tourism and trade. Thus, the government is likely to step up approaches to major carriers in the AsiaPac region and if necessary, approaches to other governments, to "encourage" their flag carriers to look at Dublin as a potential destination.
Secondly, 9/11 will have brought about a new realisation of the dangers of being overly reliant on one market; thus developing markets and easy access to/from Asia makes sense. It's also worth pointing out that carriers flying indirectly don't have an incentive to market those indirect destinations, so having a carrier which flies directly will give it that incentive and you can be sure Bord Failte/Irish Tourism will provide the necessary support.
As for likely carriers, EI is certainly a possibility although the failure of its CPT route doesn't augur well and it will probably wait until the SNN issue is sorted out before it considers Asia (possibly tying the two together as a carrot for the gov't to sort this out). However, far more likely would be SQ, MH or EK.
There are two aspects here: firstly, is there a market? Yes, but one of the problems Ireland faces is that most of its traffic to/from Asia is through LHR/AMS etc, and it's therefore subject to capacity on those routes. If they're particularly busy, it can affect the accessibility of Ireland which affects tourism and trade. Thus, the government is likely to step up approaches to major carriers in the AsiaPac region and if necessary, approaches to other governments, to "encourage" their flag carriers to look at Dublin as a potential destination.
Secondly, 9/11 will have brought about a new realisation of the dangers of being overly reliant on one market; thus developing markets and easy access to/from Asia makes sense. It's also worth pointing out that carriers flying indirectly don't have an incentive to market those indirect destinations, so having a carrier which flies directly will give it that incentive and you can be sure Bord Failte/Irish Tourism will provide the necessary support.
As for likely carriers, EI is certainly a possibility although the failure of its CPT route doesn't augur well and it will probably wait until the SNN issue is sorted out before it considers Asia (possibly tying the two together as a carrot for the gov't to sort this out). However, far more likely would be SQ, MH or EK.
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I believe they were just about to launch the CPT route but had to shelve it due to cabin crew issues re overnight stays and conditions - thats what I heard from someone inside EI. The CPT route would have been a huge success especially as SA is increasing in popularity for holidays.
As far as asia - the amount of Irish that go to South East Asia and then onto Oz/NZ is incredible - a direct flight to there would be a great asset. Our tourist industry certainly needs it!
DQ
As far as asia - the amount of Irish that go to South East Asia and then onto Oz/NZ is incredible - a direct flight to there would be a great asset. Our tourist industry certainly needs it!
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The planned CPT route never materialised this winter because of more than just cabin crew issues. Neither pilots nor cabin crew were happy with the working conditions offered by the company. These were on a "take it or leave it" basis and both sections decided to leave it.
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This is an issue I have pursued for some time; it may not be EI which brings about a direct route, but there is certainly recognition in government circles of the need - and the market.
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Bounty,
What plane would they use on the Kuala Lumpar route? I dont think the A330 can reach the distance so would it have to stop for refuelling? Also wouldnt it make more sense to fly to singapore since its oneworld partner Qantas could offer links to Australia??żż
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What plane would they use on the Kuala Lumpar route? I dont think the A330 can reach the distance so would it have to stop for refuelling? Also wouldnt it make more sense to fly to singapore since its oneworld partner Qantas could offer links to Australia??żż
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Thanks for the info Bounty, will this be by EI or MH? (or a joint operation?) Presumably, the plan would be to plug into MH's hub there. A good spot too; having been to KUL, I have to say the airport (and the city) are vastly underrated.
GOH, I doubt if they would go n/s (and they certainly couldn't fly n/s back from KUL); my guess is that they'd route through HEL, possibly codesharing with AY.
GOH, I doubt if they would go n/s (and they certainly couldn't fly n/s back from KUL); my guess is that they'd route through HEL, possibly codesharing with AY.
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Sounds like Malaysia, then. It makes sense (indeed, a lot more sense than EI); Ireland's first embassy in ASEAN was in KUL and I'd be surprised if the Irish government wasn't making pretty concentrated diplomatic efforts into getting the Malaysian govt to "suggest" DUB to Malaysia Airlines.
Makes sense for Malaysia as well; as the only carrier on a potentially lucrative route, MH should be able to channel Irish tourism and exports through their excellent KUL hub. Let's hope something good comes of this.
Emirates: had their chance - and blew it!
Makes sense for Malaysia as well; as the only carrier on a potentially lucrative route, MH should be able to channel Irish tourism and exports through their excellent KUL hub. Let's hope something good comes of this.
Emirates: had their chance - and blew it!
Or am I askin too much? hehe
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The A340-5/600 is probably "too much airplane" for EI at the moment and also, the length of DUB's runway - another method for the Irish authorities to stifle growth potential - would preclude using a four engined aircraft at MTOW.
The A330-200 would be quite sufficient to dip the proverbial toe in the water and it was being considered for a DUB-CPT route, equivalent in length to DUB-HKG.
There are other issues favouring an Asian operation, not least of which is that current Irish government t/a policy effectively limits any growth potential for EI across the Atlantic, so any growth will probably be to the east as long as this continues (although it shouldn't be for long).
I would imagine EI is watching EK, MH and others and it would not surprise me if an agreement was reached with other oneworld carriers to establish an Asian link.
The A330-200 would be quite sufficient to dip the proverbial toe in the water and it was being considered for a DUB-CPT route, equivalent in length to DUB-HKG.
There are other issues favouring an Asian operation, not least of which is that current Irish government t/a policy effectively limits any growth potential for EI across the Atlantic, so any growth will probably be to the east as long as this continues (although it shouldn't be for long).
I would imagine EI is watching EK, MH and others and it would not surprise me if an agreement was reached with other oneworld carriers to establish an Asian link.
