FORT WORTH, Texas --
American Airlines confirmed industry rumors that it will launch its
first service between the U.S. and Ireland since 1945 next spring.
The carrier said it
will fly Boeing 767s between Chicago (OHare) and Dublin, and Boeing
757s between Boston and Shannon, as of May 1. Flights will be daily
on both routes in the peak summer season and five times per week
the rest of the year.
Although it hasnt
flown to Ireland in nearly 60 years, American has operated a
200-person European reservations office out of Dublin since
1996.
Meanwhile,
intra-Ireland travelers will have a quicker way to get to opposite
ends of the Emerald Isle, thanks to new daily non-stop flights
between Cork, Ireland, and Belfast, Northern Ireland, via low-cost
airline Jet2.com set to take off March 23.
Air fares between
the Northern Irish capital and Cork -- the European Union cultural
capital in 2005 -- start at just $25 each way. Flights will depart
Belfast each day at 7 a.m., arriving in Cork at 8 a.m.; return
service leaves Cork at 8:30 a.m., arriving back in Belfast at 9:30
a.m.
For more on
Jet2.com, visit www.jet2.com.
To contact
the reporter who wrote this article, send e-mail to Kenneth
Kiesnoski at [email protected].