LGW-DUB(Economy )

Booking and check in


www.aerlingus.com is an easy site to navigate and selecting a flight for my preferred date and time was no trouble. Aer Lingus offer an advance check-in facility up to 30 days before travel. Three fare types are available: Fully flexible, Lowest and Plus. The Plus fare includes one free checked bag, seat selection and earns Gold Circle points. I chose this option.

Having made my booking, used the advance seat selection facility and chose 1D.Rows 6 and after are complimentary with the Plus fare. I opted to pay for the front row: an additional 7euro. I took advantage of the advance check in and printed my boarding pass within minutes of booking: an excellent service, and one which other airlines could do well to emulate.

I arrived at London Gatwick South Terminal at 7pm for my 9pm flight. I went directly to the Fast Track security area, scanned my boarding pass, and went into the screening area where I was met by a very pleasant and professional group of people. I was airside within minutes.

LGW South Terminal airside has a very good range of shops and restaurants over two floors.However, after a long day, all I wanted was to park myself in a seat and rest my weary bones! I proceeded to the No 1 Lounge, which is open to Aer Lingus Gold Circle passengers.

Lounge

The lounge is compact with a good choice of seat types. There are large windows giving an excellent view of the apron.

There are rest rooms in the lounge. I was warmly welcomed by the receptionist.
The range of newspapers and magazines is good.

The No 1 Lounge model offers a range of complimentary food and drink, with more substantial meals and premium drinks available for purchase.

In addition to the food listed on the menu there is a self service area with:

• Soup
• Bread rolls
• Cheese
• Salads
• Bread sticks
• Biscuits
• Soft drinks (from a dispenser)
• Hot drinks

I ordered a chicken tikka masala from the menu, and this was served quite quickly. It is really a starter sized portion, but of good quality and came with mini poppadums and naam bread. With a small plate of potato salad, cheese and pickles is was very enjoyable.

I chose a glass of merlot from the complimentary list, and found it very pleasant. I sat back to read and with the view from the windows, I was able to see the inbound Aer Lingus flight arrive.

Boarding announcements are not made in this lounge, so a few minutes after the inbound flight arrived, I proceeded to the boarding area.

Boarding began shortly afterwards, and initially rearmost rows were called, with an invitation to Gold Circle members to board at their leisure.

The aircraft was an Airbus A 320, which is the mainstay of Aer Lingus short haul fleet. The seats are upholstered in dark blue leather, have adjustable headrests and are very comfortable.

As always, Cabin crew are very welcoming and pro-active in helping passengers find seats, stow baggage, etc. I was seated in row 1, I was pleased to note that the overhead bins reserved for this row were empty, and I stowed my shoulder bag.
As this was a lightly loaded flight, boarding was swift, and we pushed back nearly 10 minutes early.

The cabin supervisor was aware that I had pre-ordered a meal, and even before boarding was complete, asked me whether I would prefer tea or coffee with my meal.

Another passenger had connected from an incoming flight from Australia, and the supervisor had a brief word, sympathizing with the long time she had spent travelling

Sitting in Row 1, the galley was almost directly in front of me. The containers for food, drink, etc are secured here, and are in full view. I was pleased to note the use of a new surface on the containers: stickers are used to identify the products inside, and when removed, left an unsightly residue. A non stick surface has been introduced, which avoids this, and greatly enhances the appearance of the galley area.

Yes, there might be small details, but they typify Aer Lingus’ commitment to constantly enhancing passenger experience.


The Captain introduced himself, gave flight times, routing and weather details. Cabin crew gave a safety demonstration, and we pushed back a few minutes early.





Once cruising altitude was reached, the inflight service began.

A new range of Inflight catering has recently been launched.” BIA: simply good food”, has been created in collaboration with Irish TV chef Clodagh McKenna, and uses Irish sourced ingredients. The main items on the menu are:

• Carrot muffin, flavoured with cinnamon & nutmeg
• Fresh fruit salad
• Cheese board
• Grilled Caprese Panini
• Cheesy Mister
• 3 finger sandwiches:
o smoked Irish salmon & cream cheese on oatmeal
o Free range egg mayo & cress on brown
o Irish cheddar ploughmans on brown
• Irish Pastrami & Pickle sandwich
• Chicken Caesar wrap

There is a good range of sweet & savoury snacks along with soft and alcoholic drinks.

I had pre-ordered a breakfast, even though this was a 9pm flight. Having been on the go since the small hours of the morning, I wanted to indulge in comfort food, and what better comfort food is there than a late night fry up!!

I have sampled the new catering menu already and been very impressed, and was curious to see how they did breakfast. It consists of the usual items

• Sausage
• Bacon
• Black & white pudding
• Tomato
• Hash brown potato
• Brown bread
• Orange juice
• Tea or coffee

However, the food quality has improved greatly. In the past, some of the food was stuck to the foil container, but not this time. When finished, there was hardly any fatty residue in the container, indicating that the food is baked instead of fried.


We landed in Dublin @ 9.55pm, half an hour early and after a short taxi we were on stand. Deplaning was quick, but as we had parked close to T1, we faced a lengthy walk to passport control.

Conclusion

As usual, Aer Lingus cabin crew deliver an excellent service: friendly and efficient. The new inflight menu is very good and deserves to be a success. Early arrival was a pleasant surprise.