Aer Lingus confirms 25% cut in Shannon-US flights

AER LINGUS announced plans yesterday to cut its transatlantic services by 25 per cent this winter “as a first step to right-sizing the business”, which has been badly affected by the recession.

As revealed in The Irish Timesyesterday, Aer Lingus has decided to axe its Shannon to Chicago service on September 1st and will withdraw the Dublin to Washington and San Francisco routes from October 25th.

The changes will last until March. It is not clear if these routes will be reintroduced for the summer season.

Aer Lingus said its Shannon to New York JFK airport service has been placed “under close review”.

This was due to be cut from the winter schedule but Delta’s announcement yesterday that it was quitting the Shannon-JFK route this winter prompted Aer Lingus into a late change of heart on the New York service.

Aer Lingus will retain its services from Dublin to New York, Boston, Chicago and Orlando. It will also continue to operate on the Shannon to Boston route.

It said indirect services from Dublin to Washington and San Francisco would be offered in co-operation with Jetblue and United Airlines.

Aer Lingus said the changes to the long-haul network were “to address the significant losses generated over the winter period and which are now exacerbated by extremely weak demand and falling yields”.

Average fares on long-haul flights fell by 19 per cent in the first quarter of 2009, reflecting “weak economic conditions and consumer confidence on both sides of the Atlantic”.

The move to reduce transatlantic services at Shannon was criticised by both Fine Gael and Labour who urged Minister for Transport Noel Dempsey to intervene. The Irish Hotels Federation expressed its “disappointment” at the announcements by Delta and Aer Lingus and said the decisions would be detrimental to tourism in the midwest region.

In terms of its short-haul services, Aer Lingus confirmed that it would reduce its capacity at Dublin by two aircraft while placing an extra aircraft in Shannon to allow it to boost its service to Heathrow to three times a day. An additional aircraft has also been added to Gatwick for the winter period while three aircraft are being taken out of Belfast.

In Cork, there will be additional frequencies on services to Manchester, Birmingham, Tenerife and Lanzarote from October 25th.

Aer Lingus said it had offered pilots and cabin crew unpaid leave “in order to deal with the surplus of staff that arises” from the changes to its winter schedule.

“Any surplus that still remains will be addressed in the context of the broader cost reduction plan, which will be rolled out shortly,” the airline stated.

Ryanair, Aer Lingus’s largest shareholder, said the cutbacks “represent a step backwards not forwards”.

Meanwhile, US-based Continental Airlines said yesterday that it will retain its services from Dublin and Shannon to Newark in New Jersey this winter.

Bob Schumacher, senior director of Ireland and the UK, said: “We are still finalising our plans for frequencies next winter, but we will be maintaining at least a daily service on both routes.”