Aer Lingus-8

[Just a spotter]

According to The Irish Times (22nd Dec), EI has been given permission to re-join OneWorld.

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/transport-and-tourism/aer-lingus-gets-go-ahead-for-transatlantic-joint-venture-1.4443829

[Noxegon]

That's not what the article says. The transatlantic joint venture is not the same as OneWorld.

[wanna]

I read the article and have the same impression as the OP, they're part of Oneworld.

[sprite1]

Noxegon is correct. It’s the Atlantic Joint Business arrangement they’re joining. Not OneWorld.

Typical non-aviation journo conflating the two.

[Skipness One Foxtrot]

Aer Lingus set to close Shannon Airport base

https://www.limerickleader.ie/news/home/634062/breaking-aer-lingus-set-to-close-shannon-airport-base.html

https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2021/0518/1222358-aer-lingus-cork/

Does this mean that Aer Lingus are pulling Shannon ops completely or are we expecting LHR-SNN to be a non based aircraft with Dublin based crews? Are the BOS/JFK routes gone for good or simply a third party handling agent replacing in house staff?

[PPRuNeUser0176]

Sounds like they will just switch to Dublin and align with what pilots do.

[Just a spotter]

Unfortunately, it looks like the cuts at Shannon are only the start of a new phase of head count reductions.

From The Irish Times, 21 May 2021

Brian Bowden, Aer Lingus chief people officer, repeated to staff on Friday that the carrier would emerge smaller from the pandemic, which meant further redundancies.

“We have now commenced discussion with unions representing employees regarding both immediate and structural changes,” he said.
https://www.irishtimes.com/business/transport-and-tourism/aer-lingus-begins-talks-on-further-job-cuts-1.4571761

[tom1975]

Oops... costly!

https://www.independent.ie/business/irish/wing-tip-incident-at-dublin-airport-40660069.html

[Just a spotter]

It would appear that the remaining options for A350's have been dropped.

https://simpleflying.com/aer-lingus-new-airbus-a350s/

[CabinCrewe]

whats the story with the EI Airbus been stuck at ACE for past 3 days?

[HotTowelSir]

whats the story with the EI Airbus been stuck at ACE for past 3 days?
I was wondering the same. I believe it is EI-DEM which flew outbound from Dublin on the 27th of July, but did not depart on it's inbound leg. An EI A333 flew out the next day, presumably to bring back two days worth of A320 passengers. The A320 itself did take off on the 2nd of August to return to Dublin, but it quickly returned to Arrecife and been parked on remote stand ever since. It can clearly be seen on the Lanzarote Airport WebCam youtube channel. Must have a quite an issue to be on the ground so long

[Aisle2c]

AER LINGUS EXPANDS LONGHAUL NETWORK WITH NEW ROUTES TO DENVER, COLORADO AND MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL (https://mediacentre.aerlingus.com/news/17082023/aer-lingus-expands-longhaul-network-with-new-routes-to-denver-colorado-and-minneapolis-st.-paul)

17th August 2023: Aer Lingus is to further expand its North American network as the airline announces a new direct service to Denver, Colorado and the re-launch of the Minneapolis-St. Paul route, both taking off from Dublin as part of its summer 2024 programme.

The new additions will bring the total number of Aer Lingus routes operated between Ireland and North America to 18. This strategic expansion reflects the airline’s commitment to its Dublin Hub strategy, not just between Ireland and North America, but also offering seamless connections to Europe.

Flights to Minneapolis-St Paul commence on April 29th, 2024, increasing from four-times weekly to a daily year-round service from next October and will be served by our newest aircraft the A321XLR from Winter 2024. Dublin - Denver flights, which will also operate four times a week, will begin from May 17th, 2024.

Passengers departing from these cities can also enjoy the convenience of onward connections to 20 European cities via Dublin.

Aer Lingus ranks fourth in the world in terms of the breadth of its longhaul network serving key US gateways and is the fifth largest European carrier based on the number of seats on offer between the US and Europe.

Speaking at the launch of the new Aer Lingus transatlantic routes, Aer Lingus Chief Executive, Lynne Embleton said:

“With Dublin’s geographic position as the gateway to Europe, pre-clearance facilities at the airport and the strong, long established Irish American ties, Aer Lingus is ideally placed to connect people and places across the Atlantic.” 

“Denver and Minneapolis-St Paul are significant business destinations within the US and the new Aer Lingus routes facilitate corporate links and connectivity between Europe and North America, through our Dublin Hub. Denver’s position as the ‘Gateway to the Rockies’ and its outdoor appeal, from world class skiing to hiking, opens up a whole new US experience to leisure travellers from Ireland and Europe.”

“This summer has been our biggest yet, with 2.25 million seats to North America and the successful addition of Cleveland, Ohio to our network. We are confident in our growth strategy and look forward to welcoming customers onboard these two new routes next year.’’

A Gateway to Opportunity

The new direct route to Denver will facilitate increased business collaboration between Ireland and Colorado's thriving industries. Colorado-based companies, including Level 3 Communications, Otter Products, Webroot, Graebel, Emergentics, and Paragon 28, have already established their European headquarters in Ireland. Denver’s growth in technology, renewable energy, and aerospace offers Irish businesses an avenue to explore new markets. The city's rich Irish heritage and vibrant Irish American community provide an ideal setting for strengthening business relationships.

The reintroduction of the Minneapolis-St. Paul route amplifies Ireland's engagement with the robust business landscape of the Twin Cities. Companies including 3M, Smiths Medical, and Medtronic are headquartered in Minnesota and have successful Irish bases. The Minneapolis-St. Paul region is the seat of 15 Fortune 500 company headquarters, including popular chain stores Target and Best Buy. The cities have been noted among North America’s fastest growing tech hubs and share some significant parallels with Ireland.

[pabloc]

AER LINGUS EXPANDS LONGHAUL NETWORK WITH NEW ROUTES TO DENVER, COLORADO AND MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL (https://mediacentre.aerlingus.com/news/17082023/aer-lingus-expands-longhaul-network-with-new-routes-to-denver-colorado-and-minneapolis-st.-paul)

But no news of expansion for EIUK!!!…although loads and freight doing well 🤷

[BHX5DME]

But no news of expansion for EIUK!!!…although loads and freight doing well 🤷

Does make me wonder if EIUK was just a way of utiilising the fleet during the COVID period and thereafter ?
With all the expansion at Dublin you would have thought EI would what to funnel as many pax from UK and Europe through Dublin to fill what will be 2.5m seats going TATL.
I hope EIUK survives but cant help but think it maybe have been a short term project and the focus will shift to DUB.
i

[Shamrock350]

EI UK can’t expand without aircraft. As it stands the Dublin fleet will be stretched to the max next summer and may even require another second hand A330 to join. To complicate matters for EI UK, the most ideal aircraft they need is another narrow body for the likes of BOS but the XLR won’t be delivered until Q3 2024 at the earliest.

While the MAN base seems to be maturing quite nicely, loads consistently up on last year, it will now need to compete with DUB for capacity and that will be difficult. The XLR arrivals are its best opportunity as they will allow new additions and free up capacity elsewhere in summer 2025.

It’s just a question of whether Aer Lingus has the patience. I certainly hope they do as the base has shown a lot of promise.

[Noxegon]

They'll need more aircraft before they can consider that.

[pabloc]

They'll need more aircraft before they can consider that.
it’s a pity IAG decided to take EI’s order of the a350 and give them to BA….

[Noxegon]

The A350 is too much airplane for most of the routes EI operates. A330neo is much more suitable.

[Skipness One Foxtrot]

it’s a pity IAG decided to take EI’s order of the a350 and give them to BA….
You make it sound like EI were beaten over the head and BA ran off with them! Aer Lingus quite rightly realised that the A330 was the sweet spot and the A350 would be more likely to run at a loss in winter!
Surely the other factor here is stand capacity at T2? It's not an Aer Lingus monopoly and they share the ramp with their competitors every day. Every new US transatlantic inbound is one less gate for Aer Lingus to expand from. There's only so much long haul you can shift across to T1 (like Toronto).

[Noxegon]

I think that's less of an issue than you make it out to be.

In the past MCO wasn't a pre-cleared flight. If capacity at T2 was that much of an issue they could operate some flights without pre-clearance – the obvious choices being the smaller gateways like BDL where there's unlikely to be much of a wait on the US side.

[Skipness One Foxtrot]

Not if you're selling pre-clearance as an advertised benefit you can't!

[Una Due Tfc]

it’s a pity IAG decided to take EI’s order of the a350 and give them to BA….

They went to Iberia.

Pre Clearance is a lot quicker this summer than last in my experience.

[daz211]

I just wish EI were in the Tier point program,
But at least I can use my premium BA / American Express companion vouchers on EI.
I hate have to connect through LHR to go across the pond.

[bnt]

Just got word from Aer Lingus that they're moving from T5 to T3 at O'Hare:
This terminal offers you an enhanced retail, and restaurant experience and includes access for eligible customers to The American Airlines Flagship Lounge (https://www.aa.com/i18n/travel-info/clubs/flagship-lounge.jsp) – just a five-minute walk away from our boarding gates in Concourses H/K.
Since I'm flying Business Class from O'Hare in April, this makes me happy. The T5 Swissport lounge that AL used was pretty bad, according to reviews and photos I've seen, so I wasn't planning to use that one at all.

[tb10er]

Just got word from Aer Lingus that they're moving from T5 to T3 at O'Hare:

Since I'm flying Business Class from O'Hare in April, this makes me happy. The T5 Swissport lounge that AL used was pretty bad, according to reviews and photos I've seen, so I wasn't planning to use that one at all.

The arrivals into T5 @ ORD were great, especially given that pre-clearance was done @ DUB. However, as you say, the Swissport lounge was not up to much. Small, no windows, and limited availability.

[ib26uk]

Read on faceache that Aer Lingus are to suspend their Dublin to London Gatwick service

Figured that would be as popular if not as popular as DUB-LHR...

[vectisman]

There’s a suggestion by some that the suspension is due to the capping of passenger numbers in summer 2024 at Dublin. Are Lingus are expanding transatlantic services and perhaps they want to use their allocation in that way.
Quite a number of people use the Gatwick service to transfer to BA long haul from Gatwick too. I wonder if another IAG airline may offer something insyead?

[Rutan16]

There’s a suggestion by some that the suspension is due to the capping of passenger numbers in summer 2024 at Dublin. Are Lingus are expanding transatlantic services and perhaps they want to use their allocation in that way.
Quite a number of people use the Gatwick service to transfer to BA long haul from Gatwick too. I wonder if another IAG airline may offer something insyead?

If it were terminal capacity capping how would swapping it out to Griffin help with that ?

Is Dublin really close to Terminal capacity. If so they have a real problem pushing significantly above the current low 30 millions throughput. and that must surely be giving IAG (EI) some pause for thought especially as the Heathrow alternate.

[vectisman]

If it were terminal capacity capping how would swapping it out to Griffin help with that ?

Is Dublin really close to Terminal capacity. If so they have a real problem pushing significantly above the current low 30 millions throughput. and that must surely be giving IAG (EI) some pause for thought especially as the Heathrow alternate.
Maybe airlines are given a quota? I don’t know myself but was just reporting what has been suggested elsewhere.

[laviation]

MAN is increasingly becoming the third ‘Heathrow alternate’ for IAG - more expansion is expected for EUK and a Euroflyer base is apparently touted ..

[SWBKCB]

MAN is increasingly becoming the third ‘Heathrow alternate’ for IAG - more expansion is expected for EUK and a Euroflyer base is apparently touted ..

Bit of an optimistic shout at the moment. Let's have this converstaion again when these things have happened... :ok:

[laviation]

Bit of an optimistic shout at the moment. Let's have this converstaion again when these things have happened... :ok:
No need?

EUK are heavily rumoured to base 2 more A330 in 2025 and Euroflyer is probably the most realistic ‘BA at MAN’ rumour I’ve heard in a long time.

These are not wishlists.

[Skipness One Foxtrot]

Those are 100% wishlists. If BA put A320s in their own livery out of MAN the aviation universe would be "surprised". As a proof of concept, doing so at LGW has been painful as their cunning plan to pay low wages coupled with no nighstops
hasn't done anything for staff loyalty and retention. They exist at LGW partially to
ensure the London market can redeem avios, not even close
to that rationale at MAN.
It's a classic negotiating tactic in the industry to say "think again about xyz here in home base" or we shall move all growth elsewhere. See also Iberia Express. Aer Lingus need to focus on making sure DUB is a growing hub, and removing feed from LGW isn't helping THAT.

[AVGEEK7812]

There’s a suggestion by some that the suspension is due to the capping of passenger numbers in summer 2024 at Dublin. Are Lingus are expanding transatlantic services and perhaps they want to use their allocation in that way.
Quite a number of people use the Gatwick service to transfer to BA long haul from Gatwick too. I wonder if another IAG airline may offer something insyead?

They are increasing DUB CDG & DUB FCO and adding DLM HER & CTA so not sure about it being capacity related. They have dropped LGW before and restarted it years later.

[AVGEEK7812]

Those are 100% wishlists. If BA put A320s in their own livery out of MAN the aviation universe would be "surprised". As a proof of concept, doing so at LGW has been painful as their cunning plan to pay low wages coupled with no nighstops
hasn't done anything for staff loyalty and retention. They exist at LGW partially to
ensure the London market can redeem avios, not even close
to that rationale at MAN.
It's a classic negotiating tactic in the industry to say "think again about xyz here in home base" or we shall move all growth elsewhere. See also Iberia Express. Aer Lingus need to focus on making sure DUB is a growing hub, and removing feed from LGW isn't helping THAT.

+1 agree with this

[dantheflyboy]

I always thought that if your flight diverted that the airline had a duty of care to get you to your destination. Is that a gesture of good will? or a protection in law?
Aerlingus regional (Emerald airways) flight from Birmingham to Belfast city running late and looking tight to beat the city airport curfew. Airport information went from Next info @22.15 to flight diverting to Belfast international, so far so good. Set off to collect passenger on this flight. Then it seems a change of plan took place as aircraft suddenly turned left towards Dublin and indeed subsequently landed into Dublin. Passengers were not offered onward travel northwards, in fact they were given a bus timetable and told to sort themselves. The problem was then that the bus was full and a further 2.5hr wait for the next one. My friend ended up sharing a taxi with other passengers getting back to Belfast at 02.30. So is that normal customer service from this airline? Is Aerlingus aware of Emerald tarnishing its reputation? Have any rules been broken? Your thoughts please.

[Noxegon]

In fairness to Aer Lingus Regional it's unlikely that all that many airlines would be in a position to magic up the two buses that would be needed to transport the full contents of an ATR at 11pm or so. Relying on existing services probably makes the best sense, with the understanding that the airline is responsible for costs that customers incur.

Apropos of nothing, I'd personally suggest that a taxi split four ways is a reasonable expense at that time of night if the alternative is a bus at 2:30am.

[BA318]

I always thought that if your flight diverted that the airline had a duty of care to get you to your destination. Is that a gesture of good will? or a protection in law?
Aerlingus regional (Emerald airways) flight from Birmingham to Belfast city running late and looking tight to beat the city airport curfew. Airport information went from Next info @22.15 to flight diverting to Belfast international, so far so good. Set off to collect passenger on this flight. Then it seems a change of plan took place as aircraft suddenly turned left towards Dublin and indeed subsequently landed into Dublin. Passengers were not offered onward travel northwards, in fact they were given a bus timetable and told to sort themselves. The problem was then that the bus was full and a further 2.5hr wait for the next one. My friend ended up sharing a taxi with other passengers getting back to Belfast at 02.30. So is that normal customer service from this airline? Is Aerlingus aware of Emerald tarnishing its reputation? Have any rules been broken? Your thoughts please.

There is a duty of care and a requirement to get you to your destination. BA has done similar. Just take a cab and charge to the airline afterwards.

[dantheflyboy]

Thanks for your thoughts and I will certainly pass on about claiming taxi.

[GAZMO]

I always thought that if your flight diverted that the airline had a duty of care to get you to your destination. Is that a gesture of good will? or a protection in law?
Aerlingus regional (Emerald airways) flight from Birmingham to Belfast city running late and looking tight to beat the city airport curfew. Airport information went from Next info @22.15 to flight diverting to Belfast international, so far so good. Set off to collect passenger on this flight. Then it seems a change of plan took place as aircraft suddenly turned left towards Dublin and indeed subsequently landed into Dublin. Passengers were not offered onward travel northwards, in fact they were given a bus timetable and told to sort themselves. The problem was then that the bus was full and a further 2.5hr wait for the next one. My friend ended up sharing a taxi with other passengers getting back to Belfast at 02.30. So is that normal customer service from this airline? Is Aerlingus aware of Emerald tarnishing its reputation? Have any rules been broken? Your thoughts please.

Why do EIR/ divert to BFS on occasions and DUB on other occasions. I assume DUB would give them better rates but BFS to me is more logical and quicker for pax to get home?

[Noxegon]

Passenger convenience is rarely a consideration when airlines choose to divert.

[Just a spotter]

Reported by FlyingInIreland.com, https://flyinginireland.com/2024/04/airbus-mark-30-years-since-aer-lingus-launched-the-a330/, 23rd April 2024 marked 30 years since the delivery of the first Airbus aircraft to Aer Lingus, with EI-SHN, an Airbus A330-301 joining the fleet on that date.

Airbus has released a short video to mark the occasion

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7188444547360731136/

JAS