Sports role as a driver of tourism, both inbound and outbound, is evidenced this morning by the announcement that Aer Lingus Regional, operated by Stobart Air, has added an extra 10,000 seats to accommodate fans travelling to the Ryder Cup, the Scotland v Ireland Euro 2016 Qualifier and next year’s Six Nations fixtures.
The airline has recorded thirteen consecutive months of passenger growth and is crediting sport as a main factor with a surge in people travelling to major sporting fixtures in the past year.
In June Aer Lingus Regional announced that it was adding flights for the Ryder Cup with fifteen extra flights to Scotland added from Cork, Dublin and Shannon. That represents an extra 2,160 seats on its Edinburgh-bound flights from the 22nd to the 29th of September.
Six Nations
For next spring’s RBS Six Nations fixtures Aer Lingus Regional is adding three return flights between the 13th and 15th of March to facilitate fans travelling to Cardiff for the Ireland versus Wales game. All of the extra flights will be operated by larger Airbus A320 jets.
For GAA fans in Kerry, the airline is adding extra seats on its Dublin route ahead of the All Ireland Final.
For the Ireland versus Scotland match in Edinburgh, the airline will also add capacity on seven return flights on its Dublin to Edinburgh route between the 20th and 22nd of March. In total there are over 3,000 seats available on Dublin to Edinburgh route.
Glasgow
From the 13th to the 16th of November, extra seats will be added to accommodate football fans travelling to Glasgow for Ireland’s Euro 2016 Qualifier against Scotland. An extra six return flights have been added from Cork with an extra eight return flights added from Dublin.
“We are delighted to facilitate those travelling to support the European Ryder Cup team, the Irish football team in Glasgow and the Irish Rugby team for next year’s Six Nations championship,” said Simon Fagan, Commercial Director of Stobart Air.
“Aer Lingus Regional is always willing to do its part to provide choice for its customers travelling to sporting fixtures in the UK. With the extra flights being added for these events, the airline is building on the success of its passenger number boost in the past year. So far in 2014, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, various Heineken Cup fixtures and last season’s Six Nations matches provided the airline with a significant increase in passenger numbers.”
