Next summer, the market between the United States and Ireland will be near pre-pandemic levels, by flight numbers, helped by yesterday’s announcement of two new US routes from Aer Lingus and Delta following suit a few hours later and announcing a route to Ireland from Minneapolis. Currently, 1,849 flights are scheduled between the two nations in May 2024, including the newly-announced routes.

Rebounding market

A few years before the pandemic, there were more flights between the United States and Ireland, but demand is rebounding, as shown by the recent announcements from Aer Lingus and Delta Air Lines. Early yesterday, Aer Lingus announced the return of its route to Minneapolis/Saint Paul International Airport and the launch of service to Denver International Airport. Hours later, Delta announced its own route from Minneapolis to Dublin, with one more weekly frequency than Aer Lingus.

Only four airlines connect the two countries, and Aer Lingus has the largest market share by far. Cirium data for May 2024 shows 1,805 scheduled flights, not including yesterday’s announcements, and Aer Lingus has 1,044. To be precise, the Irish airline has 57.8% of the market. United Airlines has the second-largest market share, 18.1%, followed by American with 13.74%, and Delta with 10.3%.

Aer Lingus serves twelve American destinations on fourteen routes (soon to be 14 and 17), with the busiest to Boston, Washington, New York (JFK), and Chicago. All four cities see twice-daily service. Boston, New York, and Chicago receive the Airbus A330-300 and have a seat offering of nearly 40,000 seats in both directions. The Airbus A321neo serves the Washington route and has just under 23,000 seats available in May.

Photo: Aer Lingus

Below is the complete list of Aer Lingus’ American destinations:

• Boston
• New York
• Chicago
• Washington
• Los Angeles
• San Francisco
• Orlando
• Seattle
• Hartford
• Cleveland
• Philadelphia
• Newark

The American carriers' operations to Ireland

United Airlines serves two Irish destinations from three hubs and is the only American carrier to fly to a city other than Dublin. From Newark Liberty International Airport and Chicago O’Hare International Airport, United flies to Dublin and Shannon. From Washington Dulles International Airport, the Chicago-based carrier only serves Dublin. As mentioned above, United has 327 flights scheduled in both directions in May, with a seat offering of almost 60,962.

Photo: Lukas Souza | Simple Flying

American only flies to Dublin but has flights from four hubs: Charlotte, Dallas/Fort Worth, Chicago, and Philadelphia. Its offering is higher than United’s as it deploys larger aircraft on its routes, like the Boeing 787-8 and -9 and the 777-200 and -200ER. Delta also only flies to Dublin but from three hubs in Boston, New York, and Atlanta. The Boston and New York flights are operated by the Boeing 767-300s, while the Airbus A350 operates the Atlanta route.

What do you think of Aer Lingus' expansion to Minneapolis and Denver? Let us know in the comments below.