Aer Lingus’ Dublin Toronto service kicks off
The inaugural flight of the new Aer Lingus Dublin to Toronto service took off from Dublin Airport just after 2pm this afternoon.
The flight, which is also the first operation of from Dublin of the Boeing B757 aircraft recently added to Aer Lingus’ transatlantic fleet, is set to arrive in Toronto just before 4pm local time (9pm Irish time).
The new service will operate year-round with a daily service between Dublin and Toronto during the summer season and up to four weekly services operating during the winter. This is the fourth transatlantic route launch in recent months and forms part of Aer Lingus’ significant transatlantic growth plan in 2014.
“Aer Lingus is delighted to add a direct service to Canada to its network,” said Aer Lingus chief strategy and planning officer, Stephen Kavanagh. “Toronto is a very important market in terms of business and tourism links and the city is home to a growing Irish community. The service also opens up connection to key cities within Canada allowing for ease of connection to onward flights. We look forward to welcoming new customers on board.”
“This new Aer Lingus Toronto service is part of a major increase in services to Canada this summer, giving customers more choice and convenience,” said Dublin Airport managing director Vincent Harrison. “We have been working with Aer Lingus to promote this Toronto route, and we look forward to continuing to work closely together in the future.”
To support the operation of the new routes from Dublin to Toronto and from Shannon to New York and Boston, Aer Lingus has wet leased three Boeing 757 aircraft from ASL Aviation Group. The aircraft are configured with an economy and business class cabin.
“We congratulate Aer Lingus on the expansion of its North American services and the launch of this Toronto route that will hugely benefit Irish business and tourism,” said Colin Grant, chief executive, Air Contractors. “As an Irish airline, Air Contractors and the ASL Aviation Group are proud to support Aer Lingus with the expansion of the Boeing 757 operation to include Dublin, and we expect the aircraft and the route to be very popular with passengers.”