Aer Lingus has unveiled two new summer routes direct from Shannon for 2020, commencing flights to Paris, France, from March and to Barcelona, Spain, from May next year.
The Aer Lingus Shannon-Paris service commences on 29 March 2020 and will be operated by an A320 aircraft every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, with one-way fares starting from €39.99 including taxes and charges. The Shannon-Barcelona service commences on 2 May 2020 and will be operated by an A320 aircraft every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, with one-way fares starting from €49.99 including taxes and charges.
The new destinations mean that Aer Lingus will now operate nine summer routes from Shannon, up from seven in 2019, as well as a winter only route to Lanzarote. The new routes will see the airline’s overall seat capacity from Shannon for the summer increase by 19%.
Aer Lingus will also be offering connections to guests travelling from Paris and Barcelona to New York and Boston via Shannon. Some 17% of guests flying to Boston and 10% of guests flying to New York from the start of this year from Shannon have travelled onwards to other North American destinations, primarily with its partner JetBlue. Aer Lingus continues to operate a high-frequency service to London Heathrow from Shannon.
Reid Moody, Chief Strategy and Planning Officer, Aer Lingus said: “We are delighted to illustrate our continued commitment to the Shannon region today by announcing two exciting new routes from the airport for summer 2020. The addition of both Paris and Barcelona to our schedule brings the Aer Lingus network in Shannon up to nine routes during summer 2020.
“Our ambition for the future is underpinned by a profitable, sustainable short-haul network supported by our guest-focused brand and digitally-enabled value proposition. These new routes offer new business and leisure opportunities for Shannon, as well as providing fantastic inbound tourism opportunities for the region for visitors from both cities. This announcement illustrates our ambition for Shannon in the coming years.”
Mary Considine, Chief Executive, Shannon Group, said that the additional services are a timely boost for Shannon and the region: “The launch of these two new routes and the investment in two new A321LR aircraft at Shannon is evidence of the strong partnership we have with Aer Lingus. This development is a major advancement in our promise to connect our airport and the West of Ireland to a growing number of global destinations, helping us to make this region a thriving, connected place. We are excited about working with Aer Lingus and our stakeholders to ensure these services are a success for the region, recognising the key role they can play in supporting FDI, tourism and our indigenous enterprise sector.”
