Aer Lingus Restarts Transatlantic Service From Shannon

Credit: Shannon Airport

Aer Lingus has relaunched transatlantic service from Shannon (SNN) in western Ireland.

Late last week, the Irish flag-carrier restarted daily service from SNN to Boston (BOS) and New York Kennedy (JFK). Both routes had been suspended because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Flights on the routes will be operated with Airbus A321LR aircraft.

“These are the latest transatlantic routes from Aer Lingus to resume since the lifting of travel restrictions to the US [in November 2021] and marks the first transatlantic flight between Shannon Airport and the US since March 2020,” Aer Lingus said in a statement, noting it will be the only airline flying either route.

“We are delighted to resume our transatlantic routes from Shannon to Boston and New York, restoring regional connectivity to the midwest of Ireland and allowing Aer Lingus to unite friends, families and businesses once more,” Aer Lingus chief corporate affairs officer Donal Moriarty said. “This summer we will be operating our largest transatlantic seat capacity from Shannon in 17 years.”

SNN has a US customs pre-clearance facility, meaning passengers headed to BOS and JFK can go through US customs at the front end of their trips.

“The links between the US and the west of Ireland are a huge part of Shannon’s story,” SNN CEO Mary Considine said, adding: “The restoration of these daily, vital US services will be a welcome boost for the west of Ireland economy.”

The SNN routes will be part of the antitrust-immunized transatlantic joint venture in which Aer Lingus participates with American Airlines, British Airways, Finnair and Iberia.

Aer Lingus already operates from Dublin (DUB) to BOS, Chicago O’Hare (ORD), JFK, Orlando (MCO), San Francisco (SFO) and Washington Dulles (IAD). The airline also provides transatlantic service from Manchester (MAN) in England to JFK and MCO.

Aaron Karp

Aaron Karp is a Contributing Editor to the Aviation Week Network.