A petition to introduce flights between Bristol and Cork will see some happy petitioners today (Tuesday) as Aer Lingus announced a new route between the two centres, starting from April 28. The airline said it will operate six flights a week, daily except for Saturday.
Ciaran Smith, head of commercial at Emerald Airlines which is the exclusive operator for Aer Lingus Regional route network, said: “Today’s announcement is a much anticipated one and will no doubt be warmly welcomed by passengers travelling for both business and travel pleasure purposes. We are progressively bolstering our 2023 schedule across 28 routes and 17 destinations in Ireland, UK and Channel Islands.”
Commercial director at Bristol Airport, Rupert Lawrie said they were looking forward to welcoming Emerald Airlines to Bristol. He said: “This partnership further strengthens the air links between the South West of England and Ireland and extends the options available to customers in the region when selecting to fly from their local airport.”
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Aer Lingus already operates flights between Bristol to Dublin seven days a week. The airline confirmed tickets for the new route are now on sale.
Stephen Sage who organised the online petition said there had been no flights between Bristol and Cork since June 2021 when Stobart Air collapsed. He started the petition and has had an overwhelming response. He welcomed the announcement of the new route.
“This is wonderful news for individuals and businesses in South West Ireland, South West England and South Wales. We began an online petition asking for the reinstatement of flights between Bristol and Cork only a few weeks ago, it attracted almost 1200 signatures and many heartfelt comments from people who had used the service in the past.
“With the support of Bristol and Cork Airports, the Cork members of the Irish Parliament and the active involvement of Aer Lingus, Emerald Airlines and Bristol Live, we have finally achieved a win for all concerned. Thanks must go to all those who signed the online petition and made such personal comments.
Mr Sage added that the petition was: “Quite possibly people power in demonstrating the depth of feeling for this valued service played a significant part in getting to this truly welcome result. For those of us who were regular travellers it means an end to complicated, time-consuming and expensive travel to where we want to go, and which for some has meant that they didn’t go at all.
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