Ireland’s flag carrier hopes to begin three routes from the UK to Boston, New York and Orlando during summer 2021 using Airbus A330-300 and A321LR aircraft.
Aer Lingus plans to jettison Stobart Air as the provider of its regional services, with the Irish national carrier opting to transfer the service to a start-up operator.
Aer Lingus has been granted tentative approval to join an existing antitrust-immune transatlantic joint venture that includes American Airlines, British Airways (BA), Iberia and Finnair.
After a deal was agreed that could pave the way for Flybe to restart operations, Routes looks at what became of the carrier’s UK network since its failure.
International Airlines Group has admitted that Airbus A321neo delivery delays have forced it to reshape its network, particularly on transatlantic routes. Chief executive Willie Walsh has also confirmed that the group has expressed an interest in some London Gatwick slots vacated by the demise of leisure carrier Thomas Cook.
As IAG’s pursuit of Scandinavian low-cost carrier Norwegian continues, Routesonline examines the current network competition and why a deal will give the British Airways owner immediate scale in the long-haul low-cost market.
IAG, the owner of British Airways and Aer Lingus, is to expand its presence at Gatwick Airport after striking a deal to buy the majority of slots vacated by the collapse of Monarch. Hungarian carrier Wizz Air is also set to take Monarch's former slots at London Luton.
The confirmation of this deal follows extensive discussions between the management of Aer Lingus and its parent company International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG) over the growth of the Dublin-based carrier’s long-haul network and the value IAG places in Ireland’s growing hub at Dublin Airport, one of fastest growing transatlantic departure markets of the current decade.
Not content with a 40+ per cent growth in passenger traffic in 2016, one week into the New Year Cornwall Airport Newquay has already confirmed the launch of a new summer link to the Republic of Ireland from Stobart Air and the return of Flybe services to London Stansted as part of an expanded summer 2017 programme that will also see increased frequencies on five existing domestic routes.
