Dublin Airport Welcomes New United Washington Service
June 08 2012
United Airlines’ new daily Dublin-Washington D.C. service will strengthen the links between the two cities and boost both business and leisure traffic, according to Dublin Airport Authority (DAA) interim Chief Executive Oliver Cussen.
United’s inaugural flight from Dublin Airport to Washington Dulles International took off this morning, restoring a direct connection between the capital cities of Ireland and the United States.
Mr Cussen welcomed the launch of the new United Airlines route and wished the company every success with its new service. “Washington-Dublin was one of a number of targets that we had for new transatlantic services and I’m delighted that United will operate this route,” he said. “Last year, despite the lack of a direct service, about 35,000 people travelled between Dublin and Washington D.C. and the advent of United’s new direct daily service will significantly grow that market,” Mr Cussen added.
Dublin Airport now has 13 direct scheduled services to cities in North America, offering passengers an excellent choice of destinations and onward connections. Dublin Airport had about 1.6 million transatlantic passengers last year, a 5% increase on the previous 12 months, and there is significant potential to grow this segment of the market.
“We are constantly talking to United and to other carriers about potential new transatlantic routes and we offer a range of generous incentive schemes to stimulate traffic growth in this area,” according to Mr Cussen. “DAA will work with United to promote the route in Ireland and the United States.”
Washington is one of 12 new routes from Dublin Airport this year and capacity is also being expanded on 17 existing services. The combination of new routes and expansions means there will be an extra 500,000 airline seats available from Dublin this summer.
The new Washington route will appeal to both the business and leisure market, Mr Cussen said. “Ireland is a key location for US foreign direct investment in Ireland, as American firms have invested more in Ireland than in Brazil, Russia, India and China combined. The US is also a major inbound tourism market for Ireland and vice versa,” he added.
United’s Washington service will operate from Dublin Airport’s award-winning Terminal 2 facility and passengers departing Dublin can avail of US pre-clearance in T2. “The ability to pre-clear all US customs and immigration checks before departure ensures a smoother arrival for United’s passengers and much easier connections to onward destinations in the US and beyond,” Mr Cussen said.
The new Washington D.C. service departs Dublin daily at 11:25 and arrives at Washington/Dulles at 14:25 the same day. The return flight departs Washington/Dulles daily at 20:02 and arrives at Dublin at 9:55 the following day.
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