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Aer Lingus to launch US flights from the UK regional airport that pays it the most money

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Aer Lingus has decided to scrap its direct flights to the United States from Shannon, according to media reports.

The two aircraft based there will be moved to a UK regional airport and used to launch US services. As is usual with Aer Lingus, which is well known for seeking inducements to open routes, it seems that the flights will go to whichever airport is willing to offer the airline the most money.

Aer Lingus to launch US flights from UK regional airport

(Back in 2018, as we wrote about, Aer Lingus was brazen enough to launch a public competition, offering to launch flights to the US city which handed over the most ‘incentives’.)

This money is usually directed from the tourism budget when it is US cities involved. Since I doubt any UK city would be willing to fund Aer Lingus flights, it is likely that the money will come from the airport. This could be in the form of cash payments or substantial discounts on landing and passenger fees.

There is no indication that these flights will stop in Dublin on the way.

Where may Aer Lingus fly from?

The Irish Times reports that six regional UK airports have submitted a bid. Edinburgh and Manchester are the only two which were named.

Aer Lingus to launch US flights from UK regional airport

What aircraft will Aer Lingus base there?

Shannon is currently the home of two Airbus A321LR aircraft.

We have written about the Aer Lingus A321LR fleet a few times, including here. This is a new long range (hence the ‘LR’) version of the single aisle A321 aircraft.

It is capable of flying from Ireland, and presumably the UK, non-stop to the US East Coast. Shannon currently serves New York and Boston.

The A321LR has a rather nifty flat bed business class seat which you can see here. The business class cabin has 16 seats.

Aer Lingus to launch US flights from UK regional airport

This appears to be a long term deal

The Irish Times reports that Aer Lingus is offering a three year contract to the winning airport.

This is bad news for Shannon, which is also facing the loss of flights by Delta and United to the US. American Airlines is the only airline which is currently offering flights to Shannon for 2021.

For UK based HfP readers, this is good news. There will be new Avios-bookable flights to the US East Coast from a UK regional airport.

The Irish Times report is here.

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Aer Lingus and AerClub

Comments (45)

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

  • Nick says:
    1 Sep1 September 05:47

    In any business, if the tables have been turned for you to the extent that they have over the past few months, the phrase ‘dog eat dog’ could never be truer, or more apt, if you want to survive.

  • Andrew Mc says:
    1 Sep1 September 06:01

    Inverness.

    • Andrew says:
      1 Sep1 September 09:12

      Yes, I was thinking that too. HIAL have very deep pockets, and there would be zero APD. Would be a bit of a shocker for people who hadn’t done their research properly for connecting transport from “London Inverness Airport”.

      Edinburgh (in normal circumstances) has direct flights to New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Chicago & Washington – so I’m not sure what they would bid without upsetting United, Delta and American.

      Prestwick? It’s only 45 minutes on the direct train from Glasgow Central to Prestwick International Station. It’s taken me longer than that on the bus from outside Queen St to Paisley International.

  • Jan M says:
    1 Sep1 September 06:13

    Tbh, I would settle for Aer Lingus running a flight from Cardiff to Dublin. CWL airport really has a lack of flight connections since the collapse of FlyBE.

  • dudeabides12 says:
    1 Sep1 September 06:22

    Here’s hoping BHX have thrown their hat in the ring.

    • Andrew says:
      1 Sep1 September 07:01

      +1 it’s a shame BHX lost New York first from United and then American. And it’s location with a train station attached means even for Milton Keynes, BHX is more convenient than LHR (although of course LTN is closer by road)

    • Chris L says:
      1 Sep1 September 08:43

      Agreed, they’ve been desperate to get some transatlantic routes back since the US carriers pulled out. Anyone remember Primera Air??! However, right now I’m guessing they’re in something akin to survival mode.

      • Andrew says:
        1 Sep1 September 09:22

        Yes, Primera pulled out of BHX before it even launched! At least QR and EK still fly from BHX.

  • Nick_C says:
    1 Sep1 September 06:30

    Bad news for the CBP guys based at Shannon. I can’t see how this will remain viable if only AA are flying from there.

    I flew EI LGW-SNN-JFK a few years ago when I needed a cheap one way flight. Both flights were full. I would have thought using SNN as a hub with feeder flights from multiple regional UK airports would attract more pax than direct flights from a single UK base.

    • Callum says:
      1 Sep1 September 06:56

      But isn’t that exactly what they do in Dublin already – with a much, much larger feeder network. Seems pointless to replicate it in Shannon for just a couple of routes.

      • Nick_C says:
        1 Sep1 September 09:59

        Actually DUB was replicating SNN, which has had US Immigration clearance since 1986.

        At one time, all flights from Ireland to the US operated via SNN. This was to protect Shannon’s historic traffic as a refuelling stop for long haul flights.

        • Callum says:
          1 Sep1 September 11:39

          I didn’t say it wasn’t! The suggestion was to make SNN a hub with a feeder network, which would just be replicating what they have in DUB given it currently is not one.

    • Chris L says:
      1 Sep1 September 09:40

      I think the point has been made by Rob many times that full flights don’t equal profitable flights. I think it’s a great idea. The narrow-body jets are likely to be right-sized to suit somewhere like MAN or BHX. It will be interesting if IAG consider setting up these routes somewhere like MAN or EDI to cause cannibalisation of BA’s routes.

  • tony says:
    1 Sep1 September 06:52

    I wonder if they would operate on a triangular route, so via DUB on the outbound for the pre-clearance, a move which would also give them the flexibility to swap the plane or crew over? Presumably it’ll be a major city that’s served in the US, so unlikely to be supporting an A321 from DUB?

  • Anna says:
    1 Sep1 September 07:02

    MAN would really benefit from some more direct flights across the pond. An Avios spending/earning opportunity to JFK would be fantastic.

  • Jonathan says:
    1 Sep1 September 07:51

    Never understood the point of Shannon. A country the size/population of Eire can easily survive with 1 long haul hub. It’s 1hr 30 drive from Cork to Shannon & only an hour more to Dublin so population that are significantly shorter travel time to Shannon is minuscule!

This article is closed to new comments. Feel free to ask your question in the HfP forums.

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