Aer Lingus Fleet/ Routes Discussion Pt 2 (ALL possible routes included)

Today EI-DUZ positioned from DUB-ORY in preparation for the Vueling flights that will begin from tomorrow.

EI considering relaunching MIA next summer. Were they do so, that would just leave MSP and BDL as 2019 routes not resumed.

MIA would be a welcome return. Its probably one of the most convenient transit stops for Latin America bound traffic too. Hartford always seemed like an unusual route as it really is a second tier provincial city in the US. I think EI should launch a Texan route after MIA. Houston is now the 4th biggest city in the US so possibly there as AA has the DFW route covered. Then again I suppose its where the Irish diaspora are located that drives EI route selection in the States over how populous a city is.

You are assuming BDL still has the cash to pay EI to fly.

MIA is tied to cruise business but as EI is now offering AA flights as connections it might open MIA up to more transfer traffic, the pre clearance makes it possible as the US doesn't permit international transfers without landing you first which is a pain, so this works for EI from Dublin but not others.

EI is down on aircraft as it has scrapped one A330-200, and two aircraft have gone to MAN. The XLR order won't be here until late 2023 at best.

If you include EI-EWR which was sent for scrapping just as the pandemic was beginning (suggesting that this would have been planned before the pandemic anyway) they're down 2 A330-200s but even if MIA does come back for summer 2022 there should be enough slack in the -300 fleet to cover it.

EI-EIK and EI-EIL are both parked and have not been put into service as yet. I thought the original plan was to use these to standardise on A333 equipment.

Qatar has an "issue" with A350's currently, 16 are grounded, once Airbus sort this the A330 will be likely be stored again and Al Baker will be happy to do a deal...

Sweet treats, small snacks and drinks. Not much else. It’s less a catering issue and more of a purposely reduced menu now.

https://www.aerlingus.com/media/pdfs/bia.pdf

I dunno, I feel that they won't have reinstated everything until they restore Barry's Tea – that Lyons stuff just isn't the same :)

I think they were on to something with BDL, honestly.

There are quite a few decent-sized US cities with little to no transatlantic service.

There are few things worse than standing in line for two hours after landing somewhere like JFK/EWR/ORD. If you're an American returning home pre-clearance in DUB and landing at your local airport is a compelling proposition.

True but the last menu update back in July had the same note.

The addition of the XLR from late next year (if all goes to plan) should open up some new markets and help them return to some old ones like Minneapolis and Hartford or intended routes like Montreal.

A fleet of 14 narrowbody aircraft across the Atlantic is a good position to be in and additional A330s should also become available again in the next couple of years. Current narrowbody routes (EWR, YYZ) could return to A330 which also free up aircraft for new routes or additional frequency.

With the ‘DUBHUB’ hopefully back in full swing we should see a return to routes that may not necessarily make sense from an Irish perspective alone but work thanks to strong European connections. Pittsburg, Houston, Nashville, Detroit are potential US cities I can see being on the table while the Caribbean can’t be ruled out as winter seasonal depending on the performance of BGI from Manchester. Canada will be harder to break into now I think, it’s traditionally low yielding and Air Canada and WestJet have bulked up ops in recent times so outside of eventually starting Montréal unless they’re brave and take on Vancouver.

Same with Cleveland. Smaller city population but similar metro area population to Columbus (c.1.75m) and no transatlantics.