Stobart Air, operator of Aer Lingus Regional routes, has today (Wednesday, 21 April) added two new routes to its network, connecting the island of Ireland with England’s southwestern coast.
The new Dublin Airport (DUB) to Exeter Airport (EXT) route will initially operate four times weekly, on Monday, Thursday, Friday and Sunday, commencing on 30 August.
The new Belfast City Airport (BHD) to Cornwall Airport Newquay (NQY) route will initially operate three times weekly on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday, commencing on 28 June.
In a recent letter to the Minister of State for Transport, Stobart Air called on the Irish government to put in place a practical vaccine passport policy which will allow people who have received a complete dose of the vaccine to travel, to help restore public confidence in aviation and help air travel to resume in line with the successful rollout of vaccination programmes.
The airline has also called on the Government to convene key industry stakeholders on a taskforce to discuss and plan for the long-term future of aviation.
Anticipating a resumption of air travel within the Ireland-UK Common Travel Area in line with the successful rollout of vaccination programmes across Ireland and the UK, Stobart Air has added these new routes to its network to provide additional choices for customers wishing to travel for business and leisure.
All Stobart Air flights will operate in line with Covid protocols put in place by the Irish and UK governments and health authorities. Stobart Air has implemented a number of enhanced health and safety measures to protect staff, crew and passengers, including enhanced aircraft cleaning, mandatory face coverings (with the exception of small children and those who are unable to wear a face mask for medical reasons), and boarding, disembarkation and in-flight procedures to reduce crew and passenger interaction.
Commenting on the routes, Andy Jolly, Managing Director at Stobart Air, said: “Stobart Air calls on the Irish Government to work with all industry stakeholders to restore confidence in aviation and facilitate the resumption of safe air travel in line with the vaccination rollout programme. In the immediate term this includes developing a vaccine passport procedure to allow people who have received their complete vaccine course to travel without restriction within the Common Travel Area.
“Anticipating a successful Covid-19 vaccination rollout which will allow air travel to resume safely later this year, we are pleased to add Dublin-Exeter and Belfast-Newquay Cornwall to our route network. We believe these new connections will cater to both business and leisure travellers with direct, convenient and cost-effective flights between Dublin and Belfast and England’s vibrant, historic and stunning southwest coast.
“We are committed to providing our passengers with frequent, convenient and affordable services through our regional connections. We look forward to welcoming our staff and customers onboard these new routes.”
