Aer Lingus is reducing its Dublin-London Heathrow service by about two departures per day from Winter 2024 onwards due to post-Covid performance. .
The decision follows a review of the airline’s network and cost base amidst financial damage from a pilot industrial dispute.
Aer Lingus lost out on two new aircraft allocation by parent company IAG due to uncertainty caused by pilots’ pay row but, following resolution of the dispute, additional A321 XLR aircraft are allocated to Aer Lingus with the first two expected to join the fleet in Q4 2024.
The airline will receive all six Airbus A321 XLR aircraft for network and capacity reassessment, possibly replacing larger A330 on US routes.
Competition on transatlantic routes from Dublin has increased from rivals like JetBlue and Delta, an increase of 20pc overall.
Aer Lingus to operate between 9-10 departures a day this winter from Dublin to Heathrow, reducing from 11-12 last winter, with plans for 11-12 departures next summer compared to 13-14 this summer. The affected flights are likely to be EI162@11:15 and EI176@17:00. The slots were initially used for flights from Belfast City airport
The airline is to launch a Las Vegas service in October and is in negotiations with ten US airports for direct services, with Nashville, Pittsburgh and Raleigh–Durham amongst the front runners.
