Tag Archives: Aer Lingus

AER Lingus has this afternoon announced it will close its Shannon cabin crew base. A virtual meeting was held at 1pm in which staff were told about the financial impact of the pandemic, and that severe cutbacks are being introduced. In a statement this afternoon, the airline said, “Aer Lingus staff were today advised that the cumulative impact of the crisis over the last 15 months means immediate actions and structural changes are required at the airline. The airline must be more cost-efficient and productive in order to generate the cash required to rebuild its financial health. Disastrous news for Aer Lingus workers in Shannon Airport and the Mid-West region today. The pandemic has done huge damage to the aviation sector. The Irish government's response to Covid has been unique in Europe at least, in making a bad situation worse. pic.twitter.com/oWnsGIELaC — Michael McNamara TD (@MlMcNamaraTD) May 18, 2021 “Immediate actions announced today by the airline include the permanent closure …

THE Heathrow slots at Shannon could become vulnerable after the current obligation on IAG to retain them at the Clare airport expires in September 2022, but with airlines now requiring public support, there is an opportunity for the Government to secure the connectivity. That’s the view of Lahinch hotelier Michael Vaughan, a former President of the Irish Hotels Federation. “Those slots are in the hands of IAG now to do what they want. I think it’s a very serious concern and I’m glad it’s being raised. It was on a lot of people’s minds before the pandemic. “Now IAG are asking the UK government for an immediate bilateral to establish an air corridor between the US and the UK. You could be looking at a greater yield on them for transatlantic as opposed to Shannon. I’d fear for it, certainly. “I know there were attempts earlier on to ensure that what amounted to State aid to Aer Lingus would be …

FEARS are growing that Aer Lingus won’t resume transatlantic services at Shannon until at least next year. A document has been circulating, ostensibly an internal Aer Lingus one, which indicates that this will be the case. Part of the document’s headline states “Realistic Plan” and it indicates that services from Shannon to Boston and New York won’t resume until 2022. In recent times Aer Lingus has sought to develop new transatlantic services from Manchester, and it indicates that Manchester-Orlando and New York would begin in late July, while Manchester-Barbados would begin in October. A number of transatlantic services would also restart from Dublin this year. The document also says that rebuilding the Dublin hub from September will be a priority. If the document were a hoax it would be a rather elaborate one, while Aer Lingus did not deny its validity when approached for comment last Friday. In a statement the airline said, “Aer Lingus is currently flying a significantly …

TD accuses State of having no plan as Aer Lingus’ Shannon commitment runs its course SHANNON Airport’s link to Heathrow could be removed from September of next year, with little sign that the Government has plans to preserve it. The Heathrow link is provided by Aer Lingus, the former State airline, but there is no guarantee that will continue beyond next autumn. In the Dáil Transport Minister Eamon Ryan said that whether Aer Lingus continues with it or not is a matter for the airline. Heathrow is a global hub airport offering connectivity to a massive number of onward destinations, and the fact that Shannon has a link to it (albeit one temporarily suspended due to Covid-19) is vital to foreign direct investment and tourism in Clare and the surrounding counties. In a parliamentary question, Clare TD Michael McNamara asked the Minister to outline actions that have been taken to ensure Shannon-Heathrow connectivity, given that the seven-year ownership of the …

SHANNON Airport could have seen Heathrow services resume before the end of the year had the State been more proactive about easing travel restrictions, according to Aer Lingus’ top executive. Donal Moriarty, CEO of the carrier, told last week’s meeting of the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport and Communications Networks that Aer Lingus had intended to resume the service next month. “With Shannon Airport, we had ambition to recommence our Shannon-Heathrow service in December. We cannot now do that. It was on the basis of what movement had taken place some time ago with the easing of travel restrictions. “Our plan is to recommence operations in April on the Shannon-Heathrow, Shannon-Boston and Shannon-JFK routes. That is our plan but, as I said in my remarks, it is dependent on the significant easing of restrictions contemplated by the traffic light system, which have to be appropriately implemented. We are very keen to restore those services and we plan to do so,” …

OFTEN criticised around Shannon, Aer Lingus spokesman Sean Doyle last week told the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Transport and Communications Networks that the airline is committed to Shannon, and plans to have transatlantic flights from the Clare airport next year. During the debate Clare TD Joe Carey, who chaired the meeting, put it to Mr Doyle that Shannon has had more services cut by Aer Lingus than other airports. “I would like to ask Mr Doyle about the commitment of Aer Lingus to Shannon Airport. Transatlantic services are of vital importance to FDI and tourism right along the western seaboard. Is the airline committed to restoring those American routes and, in particular, the Heathrow route? I note that Aer Lingus operates routes out of Cork, Dublin and Belfast. Mr Doyle has spoken about Ireland being an outlier (in terms of having more restrictive aviation policies). Shannon Airport is an outlier because it is not being treated the same as any …

THERE had been fears that Shannon’s transatlantic connectivity was set for another pummelling, with Aer Lingus possibly transferring Shannon-USA routes to the UK, but it now seems that such concern was unwarranted. It is understood that at a recent strategic planning meeting of Aer Lingus, the airline committed to operating a summer 2021 schedule to New York and Boston, using aircraft which will be based at Shannon. It is expected that there will be two A321neo aircraft at the Clare airport, each one of which has 184 seats. While Aer Lingus may still opt to begin transatlantic services from the north of England, this will not be at Shannon’s expense. Although getting back to normal transatlantic services is still way off and dependent on the Covid-19 situation stabilising, the fact that Aer Lingus is planning to continue with the services will come as a major relief to all concerned with tourism and industry in the region. Shannon has already lost …

AER Lingus has been operating “pseudoflights” from Shannon, allowing people to book tickets for flights that aren’t actually going to operate, Clare TD Cathal Crowe claimed in the Dáil. The Meelick man said that the commitment of both Aer Lingus and Ryanair to Shannon is questionable, while he criticised Aer Lingus in particular, for dubious practices. “Aer Lingus is operating pseudoflights out of Shannon. One can book three flights a day, but they will be cancelled and one might have to wait four or five months to get a refund. There is something immoral about that. Aer Lingus is either committed to flying out of Shannon and to having its aircraft there or it is not. I want the Government to intervene so that this will be solidly nailed down for the months ahead.” Deputy Crowe said that Shannon has been hard hit by Covid-19, while he also raised the replacement of Rose Hynes, who has just concluded her term …