Aer Lingus is flying high today as the newly returned Minneapolis St. Paul (MSP) route takes off from Dublin Airport for the first time since it was paused in March 2020. This restart marks the full restoration of the airline’s pre-pandemic North American network.
The non-stop service to MSP was first launched in July 2019, but was unfortunately paused less than a year later due to the COVID-19 pandemic. To meet the strong demand of this highly anticipated route restart, Aer Lingus will be offering four weekly roundtrip flights on a widebody Airbus A330 aircraft.
Minneapolis-St. Paul, more commonly known as the ‘Twin Cities’, offers a dynamic combination of both business and leisure. The thriving business scene boasts strong ties to Ireland, particularly in the biomedical and healthcare sectors. The metropolitan area is also renowned for its vibrant art, music and culinary scenes. Whether there for business or pleasure, visitors have a plethora of attractions to enjoy, including the iconic Mall of America or even escaping to the lakes and beautiful parks nearby.
Aer Lingus’ strategic expansion of its North American network reflects its commitment to its Dublin Hub strategy, offering seamless connections to Europe in addition to connection between North America and Ireland. Currently, almost half of booked passengers from MSP to DUB plan to connect at Dublin, with top destinations including London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Paris, Amsterdam, Rome, Barcelona, and Berlin.
Speaking on the re-introduction of MSP to Aer Lingus’ North American network, Reid Moody, Aer Lingus Chief Strategy and Planning Officer, commented: “Aer Lingus is delighted to welcome the return of Minneapolis-St. Paul to our North American route network. There has been a noticeable demand from our passengers for the reinstatement of this route following the temporary pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
We are dedicated to offering passengers seamless connections between North America and Ireland, and onward from Ireland to the rest of Europe. The re-introduction of this route marks the airline’s full restoration of our pre-pandemic North American network and serves as testament to this commitment. Minneapolis-St Paul is a significant business destination within the US and we look forward to once again facilitating corporate links and connectivity between Europe and North America, through our Dublin Hub.”
Updated Long-Haul Inflight Offerings
Flights to the Twin Cities are back and better than ever due to recent upgrades to the Aer Lingus long-haul flight programme.
A new inflight Business Class menu is inspired by the best Irish cuisine has to offer and has been specially curated based on customer feedback. All dishes are focused on seasonal, sustainably sourced, local produce, as the airline continues to deliver a hearty and healthy meal to passengers.
Business Class passengers will enjoy dishes such as skin-on thyme and parsley chicken supreme, herb-infused roasted pork, flaky pan-fried hake and citrus-marinated salmon. Those looking for a lighter, or vegetarian, option can also now look forward to a new rich root vegetable and pearl barley stew, served with a seasonal salad. This, and many more new additions are now available for Business Class passengers on long-haul flights.
All passengers can enjoy the perks of the newly enhanced Wi-Fi speeds now connecting to next generation satellites and improving coverage across transatlantic routings. The expanded entertainment library is sure to please as it has expanded by a third with the addition of more movie blockbusters, documentaries, and the latest TV Shows.
Source AerLingus
