Good evening, fellow Irish aviation fans and welcome to our October thread:

Here's a quick precis of developments in October. Although there are some grey clouds on the horizon - the greyest of which occurs only a month from now (Brexit, if it actually happens), the sky is ahead is by no means completely grey. There are plenty of green shoots around. Here are some of the highlights:

- AerSpace launched
- 2nd A321NeoLR delivered
- Thomas Cook collapses; not big news in Ireland, but they were large operators in Belfast.
- Mike Rutter to leave EI
- ILS to be replaced at DUB, SNN and ORK
- CX suspends DUB for winter season
- Norwegian suspends CPH and HEL
- EU aviation tax rears its head again; Ireland objects
- Hotel for NOC (and Lauda, too!)
- MSP to be a five weekly A332 service from next summer, 6th weekly MCO as well. Unfortunately, no YUL
- Redundancy for 20 FR pilots at DUB
- 4 new FR routes from DUB for next Summer
- GECAS profits increase to $1.86b.
- DAA wants pax cap of 35m increased
- Stand-off with airlines over pax charges continues.

Here's a link to the last thread: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1430457&start=150

I cannot see how an A321 would have the range for Austin. That must be the best part of 10 hours westbound. You'd have thought twice about running that service with a 707 or a DC8.

Is YUL officially scrapped or just not announced yet ?

klm617 wrote:

Is YUL officially scrapped or just not announced yet ?

Going against AC 3 x weekly 788 next year, still room for EI daily 321LR I would have thought? So hopefully just not announced!

Going back to Air Canada I don't think the increases were fully reported:
YUL increased from 3 to 6 weekly (B788) - Quiet a change from a planned x4 Max service to begin with.
YVC increased from 4 or 5 to 7 weekly (A333)

Also SNN available in 2020 subject to MAX issues been resolved.

JAmie2k9 wrote:

Going back to Air Canada I don't think the increases were fully reported:
YUL increased from 3 to 6 weekly (B788) - Quiet a change from a planned x4 Max service to begin with.
YVC increased from 4 or 5 to 7 weekly (A333)

Also SNN available in 2020 subject to MAX issues been resolved.

Good to see Air Canada beef up Mainline in Dublin to both Vancouver and Montreal. WestJet also performed better than expected this summer on Calgary and it’ll be back next summer too along with Halifax. Separately, as reported elsewhere, AA extending Dallas - Dublin in S20 for 6 months instead of 5 months. Overall not a bad viewpoint for Transatlantic next year along with the EI increases. Also I had heard word about San Francisco going 10 weekly with EI.... is that even possible?

JAmie2k9 wrote:

Going back to Air Canada I don't think the increases were fully reported:
YUL increased from 3 to 6 weekly (B788) - Quiet a change from a planned x4 Max service to begin with.
YVC increased from 4 or 5 to 7 weekly (A333)

Also SNN available in 2020 subject to MAX issues been resolved.

YUL is going from 3 weekly A333 to 4 weekly 787-8 X137, not 6.
YUL-DUB/TLV will share one 787-8 out of YUL

alexdelzotto1 wrote:

JAmie2k9 wrote:

Going back to Air Canada I don't think the increases were fully reported:
YUL increased from 3 to 6 weekly (B788) - Quiet a change from a planned x4 Max service to begin with.
YVC increased from 4 or 5 to 7 weekly (A333)

Also SNN available in 2020 subject to MAX issues been resolved.

YUL is going from 3 weekly A333 to 4 weekly 787-8 X137, not 6.
YUL-DUB/TLV will share one 787-8 out of YUL

AC are currently selling x6 weekly B788 from 30 June and x6 weekly A333 from late May. Perhaps they have incorrectly updated the website however apparently its x6 on GDS as well.

JAmie2k9 wrote:

alexdelzotto1 wrote:

JAmie2k9 wrote:

Going back to Air Canada I don't think the increases were fully reported:
YUL increased from 3 to 6 weekly (B788) - Quiet a change from a planned x4 Max service to begin with.
YVC increased from 4 or 5 to 7 weekly (A333)

Also SNN available in 2020 subject to MAX issues been resolved.

YUL is going from 3 weekly A333 to 4 weekly 787-8 X137, not 6.
YUL-DUB/TLV will share one 787-8 out of YUL

AC are currently selling x6 weekly B788 from 30 June and x6 weekly A333 from late May. Perhaps they have incorrectly updated the website however apparently its x6 on GDS as well.

They have not updated it yet in the system but as per their flight schedule its 4 weekly YUL on 787-8 and 4 weekly YVR on A330-300.

A 4 month extension has been granted by the government to Aer Arann Islands to fly to the Aran Islands from Connemara. I loved flying to all 3 islands with them this summer - I hope they can continue.

https://www.rte.ie/news/connacht/2019/0930/1079249-aer-arann-aran-islands/

Was actually looking at booking a trip to thevUS and the AC option via YUL was the best. It is there for 6 days at the moment, are you saying it’s going to reduce?

VanBosch wrote:

Was actually looking at booking a trip to thevUS and the AC option via YUL was the best. It is there for 6 days at the moment, are you saying it’s going to reduce?

YUL 4 weekly 787-8 X137

Is EI really shelving YUL? Was looking forward to seeing the shamrock in the Montreal line up.

Where will the Lauda route be to? Palma?

Some ex-Thomas Cook aircraft have started to position to SNN. I noticed at least two today coming in (there were/will be more I suspect).

A transatlantic cargo flight was forced to return to Shannon Airport with a technical issue this afternoon and then had to abort its first attempt at landing.

Western Global Airlines flight 2101 had just taken off for Columbus, Ohio in the United States (U.S.) when the crew had to turn around.

The crew of the McDonnell Douglas MD-11F cargo jet reported they had problems with their navigation systems and wished to return to the airport.

The flight had taken off at around 2.38pm and was overhead Co Galway when the crew advised air traffic controllers of their issue.

The crew also confirmed they would need to dump aviation fuel before returning to land at Shannon.

This was to ensure the aircraft touched down within safe landing weight limits.

The flight levelled off at 20,000ft and routed south for almost 200 kilometres over counties Clare, Kerry and Cork.

www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/irel ... 54033.html

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Ryanair pilot calls airline 'toxic' after hundreds are sent redundancy memos

EXCLUSIVE: The memo, sent out last Tuesday, states that pilots will need to choose between unpaid leave or a transfer to avoid potentially losing their job

A long-standing Ryanair pilot has described the airline as 'toxic' after hundreds of workers were handed memos advising them to relocate or take 12 months' unpaid leave.

The employee, who spoke to Mirror Money on grounds on anonymity, accused Michael O'Leary's budget airline of having a "long history of using bullying and scare tactics against employees", while speaking about the latest round of potential job cuts.

The comments come after a letter was sent to hundreds of crew members last Tuesday, advising them of over-staffing issues.

www.mirror.co.uk/money/ryanair-pilot-ca ... c-20333592

The short crosswind runway 16/34 is being used in Dublin today and its soaking wet.

I wonder how EI will get on with the A321neoLR off it.

EI321 wrote:

The short crosswind runway 16/34 is being used in Dublin today and its soaking wet.

I wonder how EI will get on with the A321neoLR off it.

...and as a result, the backlog is huge as per FR24 with everyone in an extended hold.

Certainly is



.

I managed to pick up two old Aer Lingus timetables at the aviation fair on Sunday. I just thought I'd run through a few highlights, a little throwback on a miserable, wet Tuesday!

The first is from Winter 1980/81:

Transatlantic: 5 weekly services, all 747. One, on Saturday DUB-SNN-BOS-JFK. That was the only service to BOS. Passenger 707 services had ended the previous Summer, along with services to YUL and ORD? This is, of course, enough for one aircraft; presumably there was one leased out and one as a back-up?

European routes:
- All flights were marked "Jet - Tourist"; not possible to determine if 737-200 or BAC111
- No early flights. No one in 1980 flew before 8am, unless they were going to London!
- Paris: daily, departure at 9.20 (via ORK on Thurs); 4 other flights pw, including one via ORK
- Amsterdam: daily at 09.15. 5 wkly afternoon service; two weekly from ORK.
- Brussels: daily afternoon; plus 4 weekly direct service by SN
- Switzerland: two wkly to ZRH, plus two by SR. two weekly to GVA (continuing to Milan LIN)
- DUS: 4 wkly, departure at 09.45. Also, two weekly to HAM. 3 wkly to FRA (departure at 10.20); 1 weekly to MUC
- CPH: 4 wkly; also 3 wkly SK via MAN.
- LIN: 3 wkly (2 via GVA). FCO - two weekly
- Malaga: 1 wkly, plus 1 wkly with IB, via MAD.


London: on average 8 daily, plus 6 with BA. To LGW: morning service (dep 0800) on Monday and Friday; daily ex Sat at 17.45.

ORK to LHR: 2 daily with EI, one with BA. SNN: Daily (ex Tu) with EI, 5 wkly with BA
MAN: 2 daily EI, 10 wkly with BA
BHX: 9 wkly EI, plus 11 wkly BA
GLA/EDI: Twice daily (ex Sat); 4 wkly to EDI
LPL: Daily ex Tu
ORK to MAN/BHX: 4 wkly (ORK-BHX-MAN-ORK)
SNN: In addition to t/a services: 4 wkly, plus late night weekday service.
ORK: 3 wkly plus late night DUB-SNN-ORK

There were also 5 weekly 707 t/a services, 3 from DUB and two from LHR via SNN.

Three weekly all cargo service to Europe (2 to FRA, 1 to ORY). Daily ex Sun 73F to LHR; 1 daily to MAN.

And that's it!

I'll do up a report on the Summer '71 (the first year of 747 operations) when I get a moment!

Controllers sound very busy at Dublin this morning. ATC is swapping over to runway 28 now. DL requested 28 for its departure to JFK.

Anyone know what the Dubai 747 is doing in Dublin? I believe 2x AW139s accompanied it.

Usually Dubai visits are horse racing related, the ruling family have extensive stables here.

A321neo EI-LRB operated EI156/7 DUB-LHR-DUB today - its first revenue service.

Its doing the 154/155 tomorrow.

EI321 wrote:

The short crosswind runway 16/34 is being used in Dublin today and its soaking wet.

I wonder how EI will get on with the A321neoLR off it.

Hainan to Beijing had no issues when I was passing this morning off 34.

Delta 764s used 28 as did some of the EI 330s

AA141 LHR-JFK diverted to SNN last night with front end glass damage.
Article linked below has photo of damaged cockpit window.
http://clareherald.com/2019/10/damaged- ... non-14141/

[url][/url]

EI321 wrote:

Anyone know what the Dubai 747 is doing in Dublin? I believe 2x AW139s accompanied it.

As mentioned above, it was horse related. Sales are on, Sheikh Mohammed himself in to look at & buy possible future Derby winners. Same aircraft & accompanying helicopters were here this time last year also.

Some interesting weather may cause disruption to flights on Thursday/Friday.


Lorenzo will bring 'very dangerous' storm surges

Minister for Housing, Planning and Local Government Eoghan Murphy has warned that potentially "ferocious and dangerous" storm surges are expected when Storm Lorenzo reaches Ireland later this week.

Mr Murphy said there seemed to be some consensus that the storm, which is currently a major hurricane in the Atlantic, is going to track northeastwards and reach Ireland on Thursday.

www.rte.ie/news/weather/2019/1001/10793 ... e-lorenzo/

TD raises concerns about future of Shannon Airport

A TD has said there is great concern in the midwest about the long-term viability of Shannon Airport in Co Clare.

Independent TD Michael Harty told the Dáil the airport was "an iconic institution" in the midwest and was an "essential driver" for regional development.

Speaking during Leaders' Questions he said it was the first port of call for emergency transatlantic landings.

He said Shannon Airport has not been supported to perform as well as was envisaged, which he said was having a knock on effect on the sustainability of the midwest region.

www.rte.ie/amp/1079448/

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Passenger numbers at Cork Airport flying high
PASSENGER numbers at Cork Airport have increased by 9% to just over two million in the first nine months of this year.

The airport welcomed its two millionth passenger of 2019 last weekend and has also announced service expansions from both SWISS and TUI for next year.

Passenger numbers at Cork Airport are expected to hit 2.6 million by the end of the year, which would be an 8% increase for the full year.

This is still lower than the peak of 3.2 million in 2007, before the Celtic Tiger ended, but represents consistent growth in recent times.

www.echolive.ie/corknews/Passenger-numb ... eea5293-ds

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Ryanair group's passenger numbers up 8% in September

The Ryanair Group has reported an 8% increase in passenger numbers for September.

The airline group said it carried a total of 14.1 million passengers on its flights last month, up from 13.1 million the same month last year.

www.rte.ie/amp/1079568/

https://www.rte.ie/news/connacht/2019/1 ... ort-lauda/

Obviously Lauda bid for the route and won it ahead of Ryanair. This is how you make redundancies in an expanding group of companies.

Move to tackle disruptive airline passenger behaviour

Thirteen organisations operating within the Irish aviation sector have signed a joint declaration, committing to tackling disruptive passenger behaviour on flights.

Disruptive passengers' incidents increased by a third in one year (2017-2018) and at least once a month the situation escalates to such a degree forcing the plane to perform an emergency landing.

The organisations that signed the agreement include Ryanair, Aer Lingus, the country's main airports and the Commission for Aviation Regulation.

They have pledged to promote:

• A zero-tolerance approach to disruptive behaviour where safety is a risk
• The identification, pre-emption, management and reporting of disruptive incidents
• The responsible sale and consumption of alcohol
• Ongoing education and communication with passengers to continue to raise awareness of the risks associated with disruptive behaviour

www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2019/1002/10795 ... behaviour/

Dominance’ of Dublin Airport harms regions: report

Dublin Airport is securing the bulk of growth at the expense of Shannon Airport and investment in the mid-west and western regions will suffer, a report has warned.

Commissioned by Limerick, Ennis, and Galway business groups, the report by consultants Copenhagen Economics warns that Dublin’s dominance will only get worse and further skew regional development after Brexit.

It recommends the Government look again at the way it helps regional airports and for the regulator, the Commission for Aviation Regulation, to consider regional issues in setting charges at Dublin Airport.

Shannon Airport, which handles 1.7m passengers, is operating at only 45% of its capacity at peak time and has been hit further by the worldwide grounding of the Boeing 737 Max jets, according to the report.

www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/busi ... 54590.html

Airbus taking advantage of Lorenzo for crosswind testing the A330-800 NEO test ship today at SNN.
twitter.com/ShannonAirport?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1179784176691752960&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.breakingnews.ie%2Fireland%2Fstorm-watch-images-from-around-the-country-as-storm-lorenzo-hits-ireland-954750.html

A former Aer Lingus 737 is currently at the centre of a political argument in Canada.

Justin Trudeau has come under fire from his rivals for using two aircraft during his campaign. One of those aircraft, C-GNLE of Nolinor Aviation, originally started its life in 1975 with Aer Lingus and is now being used to ferry cargo for the campaign team, following the Prime Minister as he travels across Canada.



https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-49901452

There's even a parody account on Twitter documenting its every move with plenty of photos of this old bird.

https://twitter.com/TrudeauPlaneB

Nice to see one of Aer Lingus' original 737-200s still going strong, even with the political backlash!

Aer Lingus to trial facial recognition for its US flights

Aer Lingus passengers travelling to the United States will no longer be asked to present their boarding passes on certain flights after the airline rolled out a new biometric boarding process.

The Irish carrier has launched a facial technology trial on some of its North American routes in conjunction with the US Customs and Border Protection.

The technology has been installed on one boarding gate at Dublin Airport and is used on a number of flights.

www.businesspost.ie/news/aer-lingus-tri ... hts-454244

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Homeless chef was living in Dublin Airport for two months when he stole bag with €200 inside
Chef lived in airport for two months when life 'spiralled out control'
Homeless campaigner Peter McVerry says people are sleeping there in desperate bid for place to stay

https://amp.independent.ie/irish-news/c ... 64521.html

—-

Dublin Airport is looking for immigration control officers and the pay is fantastic

Successful candidates will be paid between €459.65 to €762.68 per week and will be appointed to immigration duties in the Border Management Unit at the airport.

www.dublinlive.ie/news/dublin-news/dubl ... 036794.amp

Delta's schedule seems to have the A330-300 operating on all its DUB routes next summer, JFK, BOS and ATL.

Sad to see the 764s leave DUB, I've had many enjoyable flights on them.

What happened the Canada Air flight to Toronto today? Went down runway and then came back to terminal for an hour.

Also why doesn’t Qatar. serve pre departure champagne?

EI321 wrote:

Delta's schedule seems to have the A330-300 operating on all its DUB routes next summer, JFK, BOS and ATL.

Sad to see the 764s leave DUB, I've had many enjoyable flights on them.

They're being refurbished into a high-J config and used on BOS/JFK to LHR and other premium destinations.

Two casualties after light aircraft crashes in Co Wexford

A light aircraft has crashed at Duncormick, Co Wexford, with initial reports indicating two casualties.

Gardaí and Emergency services are currently at the scene of the accident which occurred at approximately 5.45pm this evening.

http://www.rte.ie/news/regional/2019/10 ... o-wexford/

EI321 wrote:

Delta's schedule seems to have the A330-300 operating on all its DUB routes next summer, JFK, BOS and ATL.

Sad to see the 764s leave DUB, I've had many enjoyable flights on them.

Wow! BOS has been a great success for DL ex DUB. (No Surprise). B757 to B767 to A330 plus a longer season each year since they started the route in 2017.

alancostello wrote:

EI321 wrote:

Delta's schedule seems to have the A330-300 operating on all its DUB routes next summer, JFK, BOS and ATL.

Sad to see the 764s leave DUB, I've had many enjoyable flights on them.

They're being refurbished into a high-J config and used on BOS/JFK to LHR and other premium destinations.

The high density J B764s have only 3-4 more than A333 but Y will see an uplift. Unless they are getting a new config?

I believe the A333 intermittent replacement on JFK by the B764 has generally an operational than demand requirement. This could happen again around January but more A350s have probably helped them.

BOS has been an exceptional performer for them, EI had it way to long to themselves. Could there be potential for year round or until Jan in future.

nu wrote:

What happened the Canada Air flight to Toronto today? Went down runway and then came back to terminal for an hour.

Also why doesn’t Qatar. serve pre departure champagne?

Possibly a tech fault.

OA260 wrote:

Two casualties after light aircraft crashes in Co Wexford

A light aircraft has crashed at Duncormick, Co Wexford, with initial reports indicating two casualties.

Gardaí and Emergency services are currently at the scene of the accident which occurred at approximately 5.45pm this evening.

http://www.rte.ie/news/regional/2019/10 ... o-wexford/

Unfortunately, the two casualties have died.

RIP.

The Delta 764s were long overdue a cabin refurbishment. Their IFE systems were installed around 2006. Only 3 of the 21 aircraft have gone into hangars for the refurb so far.

Would be nice to see them launch Detroit next year.

JAmie2k9 wrote:

alancostello wrote:

EI321 wrote:

Delta's schedule seems to have the A330-300 operating on all its DUB routes next summer, JFK, BOS and ATL.

Sad to see the 764s leave DUB, I've had many enjoyable flights on them.

They're being refurbished into a high-J config and used on BOS/JFK to LHR and other premium destinations.

The high density J B764s have only 3-4 more than A333 but Y will see an uplift. Unless they are getting a new config?

I believe the A333 intermittent replacement on JFK by the B764 has generally an operational than demand requirement. This could happen again around January but more A350s have probably helped them.

BOS has been an exceptional performer for them, EI had it way to long to themselves. Could there be potential for year round or until Jan in future.

They are going from 246 to 238 seats: 34 Delta One suites, 20 Premium Select, 28 Comfort+, and 156 Main Cabin.

The A333s have 34 Delta one, 40 comfort+, 219 main cabin for 293 total.

Aer Lingus rejects DAA claim lower passenger levy will impede airport

Airline says it will pass on proposed 15% drop in charges to passengers

Aer Lingus chief executive Sean Doyle has rejected the DAA’s claim that it would not be able to finance €1.8 billion of new infrastructure at Dublin Airport if a proposed reduction in passenger charges goes ahead.

Mr Doyle also said Aer Lingus would pass on to its customers the 15 per cent reduction in passenger charges that has been proposed by the Commission for Aviation Regulation, which regulates such fees at Dublin Airport.

www.irishtimes.com/business/transport-a ... 6?mode=amp

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It's not what we should be doing as a neutral country': Anti-war rally planned for Shannon

Protestors are set to take part in an anti-war rally today over the use of Shannon Airport by the US military.

A rally is planned by hashtag #NoWar2019 Pathways to Peace later today near the airport at 3pm.

https://amp.breakingnews.ie/ireland/its ... 55222.html

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Supporting Shannon Airport cannot be at the detriment of Cork, Taoiseach

The Taoiseach has said that any support offered to Shannon airport cannot be to the detriment of Cork.

“If one provides route supports to an airport, one must ensure it does not cannibalise another,” Leo Varadkar told Independent TD Michael Harty in the Dáil discussed the future of Shannon Airport.

www.echolive.ie/corknews/Supporting-Sha ... 0e95260-ds

From todays budget

• Encouraging direct access into our regional airports and ports from overseas markets

www.rte.ie/news/budget-2020/2019/1008/1 ... 0-tracker/

Any idea when the nrw EI uniforms are to be presented? Maybe euro white with splashes of green???

By tge way what does "encouraging fi direct access" mean! I kniw what the words mean but what does the statement mean? Shane Ross language for what exactly?

We've already seen a brief preview of the uniform.



There's quite a range of options, at least in the earlier concepts.

In the first part of the summer they carried out wear trials and eventually had a five week fitting programme.

November was the month mentioned, not sure if that's still the case.