After Turbulence, Aer Lingus Takes Off From Belfast

AER Lingus finally launched its controversial Belfast-Heathrow route yesterday and immediately flew into another row with rival carrier Ryanair.

The airline will operate three daily flights between Belfast International Airport and London following the recent establishment of a EUR 130million regional hub at the airport its first outside the Republic.

However, never a company to miss a trick, staff of Ryanair, which operates between the Belfast City Airport and Stansted, turned up at Belfast International and handed out vouchers to passengers queuing to check-in for the Aer Lingus flight.

Having weathered the criticism when his airline decided late last year to pull the plug on the Shannon-Heathrow route, Dermot Mannion, the Aer Lingus chief executive, dismissed it as nothing more than a stunt.

You have to realise Aer Lingus is the big prize which Ryanair cant have, he said.

Michael OLeary knows full well no matter what stunts he pulls, Aer Lingus is going to stay independent and there is very little he can do about it.

Ryanair had also branded the first Aer Lingus flight to Heathrow a disaster. It said two of its staff had checked in for the flight and were among just 39 passengers.

But Aer Lingus rubbished the claim, saying: The first flight was full and the rest were virtually all full.

Ryanairs headline-grabbing stunt comes more than a year after it launched a e1.48billion takeover bid for Aer Lingus. It was rejected, but Ryanair retains a stake of almost 30 per cent stake in the airline.

Mr Mannion, speaking at Belfast International, said he was very confident the airline would carry its predicted 500,000 passengers on all nine Belfast routes in its first year.

He said: We have already received 100,000 bookings, so were well on target.

Identifying BMI as Aer Linguss primary competitor on the Belfast- Heathrow route, Mr Mannion nevertheless insisted his firm would undercut the British rival on price.

Aer Lingus is a low-fares airline, the other incumbent on the Heathrow route is not, he said.

The airlines decision to ditch the Shannon-Heathrow service in favour of a Belfast-Heathrow route created a furore last autumn.

Business and tourism interests in the mid-west predicted disaster for the region. Critics said up to 10,000 jobs in 28 multinational companies based in Limerick, Clare and the broader western seaboard would be jeopardised.

When the last Shannon-Heathrow service took off on Sunday, the mayor of Co. Clare described it as a dreadfully black day for Shannon and the region.

Patricia McCarthy said: We can accept losing services that are not viable, but to lose a service that is economically viable is a disaster for anyone.

Some 300,000 passengers a year travelled on the route which had been in service for over 50 years.

Mrs McCarthy said: Everybody has got to double their efforts to make sure we continue to attract business and tourism. The airport faces a second blow when compulsory stopovers for some transatlantic flights are phased out by April.

Mr Mannion conceded the decision to move the Heathrow landing slot to the Belfast route had caused some difficulties but said the airline remained committed to Shannon and had three daily transatlantic services operating from there.

We are committed to Shannon in the long-term, he said.

John Doran, chief executive of Belfast International Airport said the new service was a very welcome addition to the airports offering 50 services, 36 of which were international.

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