Aer Lingus confident of demand for a return to air travel

Aer Lingus said it plans to fly to more than 50 short-haul destinations, 41 routes from Dublin, seven from Cork and one each from Shannon, Belfast and Knock

Aer Lingus is continuing efforts to rebuild flight numbers back to pre-pandemic levels unveiling what it called an ambitious schedule for Summer 2022.

The airline said it will operate 16 transatlantic routes next year including three direct flights from Manchester to New York, Orlando and Barbados. Aer Lingus also confirmed that transatlantic flights from Shannon to New York and Boston will resume in March.

Shannon was further boosted with the news that US airline United will also resume a daily flight in March from New York/Newark to Shannon operating it until the end of October 2022.

Aer Lingus is predicting the momentum in customer demand for air travel since restrictions were lifted in July will continue into next year but the number of flights announced remain below 2019 levels from a number of airports.

Aer Lingus said it will ramp up its short-haul capacity between now and Summer 2022 and plans to fly to more than 50 short-haul destinations, 41 routes from Dublin, seven from Cork and one each from Shannon, Belfast and Knock.

The seven flights from Cork next summer stands in contrast with the 12 flights it operated in the summer of 2019 prior to the pandemic. The seven routes from Cork next summer fly to Heathrow, Amsterdam, Dubrovnik, Faro, Lanzarote, Malaga and Palma.

In addition, Aer Lingus operated eight flights from Cork to the UK and France under the Aer Lingus Regional brand operated by Stobart. That airline closed in June with Emerald Airlines taking over the franchise from 2023, although it may operate some regional flights before then.

Aer Lingus' parent company IAG is to update investors next week on the progress it is making restoring flights and passenger numbers when it published its financial results for the third quarter.

Data this week from air navigation firm Eurocontrol shows the average weekly aviation traffic in and out of Ireland moved above 60% of 2019 levels for the first time since the onset of the pandemic last March and the introduction of a ban on unnecessary travel. The figures show that back in March, air travel in and out of Ireland fell to below 15% of 2019 levels.

Aer Lingus’ most recent consumer survey conducted in September showed that almost two thirds (65%) of adults in Ireland are planning to travel internationally in 2022, either for holidays, business, or reconnecting with family and friends.

“Month by month, we can see more and more people taking to the skies again," Reid Moody, Chief Strategy and Planning Officer said. "We’re confident that the demand is there for travel next year. We know from our customer research that Irish people are very keen to get back flying."

In response to the summer schedule, Niall Gibbons, Chief Executive of Tourism Ireland, said the importance of convenient and direct, non-stop flights to and from cannot be overstated. "As we restart tourism to Ireland from overseas after what has been a devastating time, this announcement of the restoration of many Aer Lingus routes is very much a vote of confidence in the future of our industry," he said.