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The Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) sees 20% increase in capacity between Ireland and the United States next Summer with an extra 270,000 seats and in total the number of available seats will be just under 1.7 million.
At Dublin Airport Aer Lingus is increasing Transatlantic capacity with three extra Boston and four extra Chicago flights per week, and American Airlines is to launch a new daily New York JFK route and US Airways seat capacity will be up by 16% operating a Boeing 767-200 on the Philadelphia route. Dublin Airport will have 12 daily scheduled flights to 9 different US airports next summer.
DAA Strategy Director Vincent Harrison said “Dublin Airport will have better connectivity to the United States next summer than Gatwick or Manchester airports”.
Shannon Airport sees a significant uplift in capacity as United Airlines launches a new daily Chicago service from 6th June and US Airways is resuming the Philadelphia route on 22nd May after an absence of four years. In summer 2013 Shannon Airport will have six flights per day to five different US Airports.
DAA Strategy Director, Vincent Harrison said “This is a very significant expansion of air capacity between the US and Ireland, and represents a major vote of confidence in the Irish market. We are constantly working to win new business for our three airports and we’re delighted with the significant expansion in transatlantic capacity for next year. The DAA will be working closely with its airline customers, tourism agencies and other stakeholders to help promote these additional services on both sides of the Atlantic”.
The DAA stated Transatlantic routes to Ireland are heavily dependent on the leisure segment of the market, as up to 55% of passengers are holiday makers, with a further 20% visiting friends and relatives. North American residents account for 54% of passengers on transatlantic routes to Ireland, with Republic of Ireland residents accounting for 34% of passengers.
Passengers resident in other countries, including the UK, make up the remaining 14% of travelers on transatlantic routes into Ireland. Dublin Airport is seeing significant growth this year from British and European passengers transferring onto US connections at Dublin and availing of US pre-clearance facilities
Irish Aviation Research Institute © 21st November 2012 All Rights Reserved.