Stobart Air said it has now flown 10 million passengers on regional routes under its franchise partnership with Irish carrier Aer Lingus.
Since its first Cork- Glasgow flight in March 2010, Stobart Air has invested over €170 million on a fleet renewal programme, including the addition of a new ATR42-600 aircraft at a cost of €14 million to service the Public Service Obligation (PSO) routes.
The airline recently renewed its contract to operate the PSO routes connecting Kerry and Donegal to Dublin and beyond. Over 8,000 people flew on these routes in October, representing a 20 per cent increase in traffic on last year. Over 80,000 passengers have flown domestically within Ireland since the beginning of 2018.
Since 2010, services under the franchise agreement have more than doubled, increasing from 12 to 25 regional routes across Dublin, Cork, Shannon, Kerry and Donegal, operating more than 22,000 flights.
Stobart Air has doubled its workforce in the last eight years, currently employing almost 600 people.
In the last two years, the airline has increased the number of flights between Dublin to Bristol and Edinburgh by a third, flying multiple times per day with convenient flight times.
Since 2010, Stobart Air routes, under its franchise agreement with Aer Lingus, have facilitated transatlantic connectivity for UK and Irish passengers, with over 500,000 passengers connecting to Aer Lingus long-haul services at Dublin and Shannon since 2010.
Aer Lingus regional passengers travelling onwards to the US from the UK can pre-clear US Immigrations and Customs at Dublin Airport, rather than queuing on arrival in the States.
Stobart Air operates a fleet of state-of-the-art ATR 600 series aircraft with the latest innovations in cockpit technology.
Stobart Air managing director, Graeme Buchanan said: “Since the inception of our franchise agreement with Aer Lingus eight years ago, we have worked together to deliver regional connectivity for our passengers throughout Ireland and the UK. We operate across some of the busiest and most popular routes, positioning Ireland as an international transatlantic travel hub. This is a key part of our growth strategy.
“We’re very proud of this 10 million passenger milestone. It highlights the success of our franchise partnership with Aer Lingus and is testament to the strength of our business model in providing regional connectivity for leading airlines. We look forward to further developing our route network and we remain focused on future growth plans and developments.
“We are committed to growing the airline by expanding our fleet and our team, improving our service, and continuing to connect Irish passengers to regional destinations and beyond.”
Aer Lingus’ summer 2019 schedule, includes a return of regional routes including Cork-Newquay, Dublin-Rennes, Cork-Rennes and Dublin-Jersey.
