AerLingus Removes Minneapolis/St. Paul Flights From Schedule

Aer Lingus’ initial plans to bring back service between its hub at Dublin Airport (DUB) and Minneapolis, Minnesota, was short-lived as its latest flight schedule update indicates the flights were removed. Last week, Ireland’s flag carrier reportedly filed the flights between the two cities, with a start date in 2024.

While the service was never officially announced, it would signify the airline’s return to the Minneapolis market after an extended hiatus. Additionally, the service would reportedly be the last international route to be reinstated at the twin cities airport after the pandemic.

What’s going on?

According to AeroRoutes, an airline schedule and network changes provider, Aer Lingus removed its preliminary flights to Minneapolis–Saint Paul International Airport (MSP) from its schedule this week. The carrier planned to resume the route on April 29, 2024, with four weekly flights on an Airbus A330-200 aircraft.

Photo: Aer Lingus

The initial flight data revealed that EI089 would depart DUB at 14:20 and arrive at 16:55. The return flight, EI088, would leave MSP at 18:45 and land at DUB the next morning at 08:25. No further information, such as the days the flights would operate or how long the service would last was made available. The flights were also never available to purchase through the airline’s website.

Simple Flying contacted the carrier for comment, but a representative could not be immediately reached. According to Thrifty Traveler, the airports had no information about Aer Lingus’ plans either.

History of the route

The route was launched in the summer of 2019 and reportedly received great fanfare in Minnesota as the state’s business community had racked up considerable demand for a nonstop flight to the Emerald Isle.

Thanks to the increased demand for business travel, MSP was introduced to two other international routes in 2019, featuring service to Mexico City, Mexico, and Seoul, South Korea. According to Thrifty Traveler, airport officials that year teamed up with Minnesota’s businesses, including its wealth of Fortune 500 companies, to gather information about where they wanted to send their employees over the next several years, which would often be in an expensive business class seat.

Officials used the data to give airlines insight and provide a detailed look at where demand lies among some of the region’s most lucrative travelers. It proved effective with Aer Lingus launching its service.

What about MSP’s largest carrier?

When the pandemic snubbed most of the industry, the airline had to shelve flights to MSP. Still, as air travel has roared back, exceeding pre-pandemic levels in some markets, Aer Lingus has not returned to MSP but instead resumed several routes to the US and introduced new cities to its route network, such as Cleveland.

As demand has boomed, Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines has reportedly mulled a nonstop flight between MSP and DUB since last year. The airline has a significant presence at MSP as the airport is a hub inherited from Northwest Airlines.

Photo: Lukas Wunderlich/Shutterstock

Ishrion Aviation indicated last November that Delta initially planned to introduce service to DUB in the summer of this year on a Boeing 767-300ER. However, since that time frame has passed, it is unclear whether Delta will follow through with its plans, which would essentially take over Aer Lingus’ capacity if the Irish airline fails to resume its service.

Sources: AeroRoutes, Thrifty Traveler, Ishrion Aviation