Aer Lingus revealed it is searching for more winter seasonal destinations using Airbus A321XLR aircraft such as the flights to Cancun three times weekly from January to April next year.
The carrier took delivery of two additional A320XLRs in September, raising its total to five, with a sixth due soon.
While there is a reasonable demand for seasonal summer routes for the new long range narrowbody aircraft, winter demand from US travellers on North Atlantic routes is traditionally weak. Aer Lingus currently operates seasonal winter schedules to Las Vegas and Miami.
Third-quarter operating profit reached €170m, up €31m year-on-year after adjusting for last year’s pilot strike.
Bookings for Cancun perform well, supporting further winter sun route exploration.
Lynne Embleton shared “Ireland is very seasonal – lots of people want to come to Ireland during the summer, but people don’t really want to come in the winter. So we are looking at how we best use our assets in the winter. Part of it is, can we make our costs more bearable? We’re looking at winter sun opportunities. I do have a few others in my mind.”
