ROUTES EUROPE: Dublin Airport Expects Record Year for Transatlantic Traffic

Dublin Airport is set for another record-breaking year for transatlantic traffic in 2014. Last year, a record 1.9 million passengers travelled between Dublin and North America, but this total is likely to be eclipsed this year, with new routes to San Francisco, Toronto and St John’s, Newfoundland.

The launch of these new long-haul routes, coupled with additional capacity on existing transatlantic services, will deliver a 17 per cent increase in Dublin Airport’s North American capacity in 2014, as 320,000 additional seats will be available. Dublin will have 268 flights per week to and from North America in the peak summer, making it Europe’s seventh largest airport for transatlantic traffic. Dublin will offer 13 direct destinations in North America this summer, with 5 destinations served by more than one carrier.

All US-bound flights departing from Dublin this summer will pre-clear US Customs & Border Protection at CBP’s dedicated facility in Dublin Airport. By availing of US pre-clearance at Dublin, passengers arrive in the United States as a domestic traveller, making connections and onward travel easier and facilitating a much smoother entry into the US.

This ability to use CBP at Dublin is helping the airport to significantly increase its transfer traffic. Transfer business at Dublin increased by 36 per cent last year, as more than 500,000 passengers used Dublin as a hub. Data shows it is attracting transfer traffic from cities in Britain and continental Europe.

This summer, a total of 220 flights per week will operate to/from ten destinations in the US, a ten per cent increase in capacity compared to last year; while 48 flights per week will operate to/from three destinations in Canada, delivering an 80 per cent increase in seat availability compared to 2013.

“The number of North American routes and destinations from Dublin Airport is greater than ever this year,” Jon Woolf, senior vice president, aviation business development, Dublin Airport told The HUB in Marseille, France last night ahead of Routes Europe.

“Last year we had a significant jump in transatlantic capacity at Dublin and we’ve been able to replicate that in 2014. What was particularly pleasing last year was that our transatlantic traffic grew faster than the expansion in capacity, so we can see there remains significant demand for extra services and that’s being fuelled by the recovery in the Irish economy our growing transfer traffic,” he added.

This year at Dublin Airport, Aer Lingus has new direct services to San Francisco and to Toronto, Air Canada will operate to Toronto year-round with its new Air Canada rouge leisure carrier and Canadian airline WestJet will operate a summer service to St John’s, Newfoundland. The new WestJet service is the airline’s first European route, and is operated with a Boeing 737-700 series aircraft.