Getting to the Airport

The busses 782 to 785 all run from the centre of Dublin to the airport in about twenty minutes in good traffic. There are several stops throughout the city. The last stop in the city centre is custom house on custom house quay. The advantage of boarding at custom house is that all busses to the airport call at the stop. The disadvantage is that they tend to be already very full by the time they get there.

Check-In

Aer Lingus checked me in automatically at the time I made the booking. So when I arrive at the airport, I can head straight for security. Aer Lingus uses Terminal 2 at Dublin Airport.

Airside

Historically, Ireland has strong ties to the US, with many Irish families emigrating to the US during the great famine. As a result of these ties, Dublin Airport is very well connected to the US. It is hardly surprising that passengers travelling to the US from Dublin can conveniently do their pre-clearance at departure.

Terminal 2 is quite spacious and a lot more pleasant than the much older Terminal 1. As I have no lounge access on this trip, and I haven’t got that much time left either, I grab a quick coffee from one of the many eateries in the terminal and make my way to the gate.

The departures screen shows my flight boarding from gate 335. It’s quite a maze trying to find gate 335. Much to my surprise, once I get there, I realise that 335 is the bus stop for a shuttle that takes passengers to a provisional barrack on the north side of the airport with six additional gates that are not connected to the main terminal building.

Boarding

When I booked the ticket, I purchased a carry-on baggage fare, which entitles me to take a piece of luggage in the cabin with me. It also gives me access to the priority lane for boarding.

The Cabin & Seat

The cabin would be quite nice if it weren’t for the fact that it looks as though it last saw a vacuum cleaner several decades ago.

I’ve booked seat 4 A, and the seat pitch is not bad at all. There’s also an adjustable headrest with ears for some extra comfort.

Luckily, the flight is not full. There is a gentleman sitting on 4 C, but 4 B remains empty. We take off in a westerly direction and then make a wide left turn to point us in the general direction of the mainland.

The Crew

There are four crew on this flight and they’re very Irish. They’re friendly and chatty and interact pleasantly with the passengers.

The Meal

Aer Lingus has buy on board. However, there are no menus on the aircraft, so if you’d like to know what’s available, you better check the menu online before the flight. I have the chicken sandwich with stuffing and a Coke Zero to wash it down. The meal sets me back EUR9.-, which I think is quite acceptable. The sandwich is rather good.

Arrival in Zürich

The flight time to Zürich is one hour and fifty minutes. We land on runway 14 at 19h59 and make a short taxi to our stand at the satellite pier E. My heart sinks, because we park right next to the Emirates evening service from DXB, which is operated by the A 380 and which is in the process of deboarding its passengers. The queues for the shuttle and at immigration are going to be hell.

Or maybe not. Never underestimate the organisational talent of the Swiss – 27 minutes after touch down, I‘m already sitting on a train to Zürich main station with five minutes to spare.

Conclusion

Flying with Aer Lingus is hardly glamorous. The ground experience is fine, but the state of the aircraft cabin was a bit offputting. Still, the flight was über punctual arriving in Zürich and the crew were cordial and friendly. The prices for buy on board catering are reasonable and the chicken sandwich I had was rather nice. I don‘t think I‘d go out of my way for Aer Lingus, but they‘re not bad.