Aer Lingus FAO -DUB
Apr 1, 2014, 3:39 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jan 2011
Programs: Aer Club Platinum, BAEC Silver, Star Alliance Gold, Flying Blue Gold
Posts: 123
Aer Lingus FAO -DUB
FAO-DUB (Economy )
Booking and check in
This was the return flight of our trip to Faro, and our first time using Faro airport.
Portway are Aer Lingus handling agents, and are both efficient and friendly. Check in opened two hours prior to check in, and there were separate desks for Gold Circle/bag drop, and general check in. Before beginning the check in process, the staff outlined which desks passengers should approach, which avoided unnecessary delays. It took only minutes to drop off our bags, and we proceeded to security.
Being Sunday evening, it was relatively quiet, and we were airside almost immediately.
Faro airport has good shopping and dining facilities, with a particularly good duty free shop (available to all passengers).
Lounge
There is only one lounge in Faro operated by Servisair. It is small but comfortably furnished, and has its own restrooms. Complimentary wi-fi is available. There is a limited range of reading material.
The food on offer consists of:
Chilled cakes & pastries
Chilled sandwiches
Savoury nibbles
Biscuits
Whilst the range is limited, the food is good quality and replenished regularly.
A full range of soft and alcoholic drinks is available along with a nespresso machine.
Boarding
Passport control is almost directly outside the lounge, and as with security, there was no queue to speak of and we were at the departure gate within seconds. Priority Boarding is announced for Gold Circle and passengers in the forwardmost rows. However given that passengers are bussed to the aircraft, this is of value only if one is on the first (of two) coaches. As we were in row 2 and had two cabin bags to store, I was somewhat apprehensive that there would be no space available above our seats. As it happened, there were few passengers in the front rows, so there was plenty of space available.
The cabin crew were very welcoming (as is the norm for Aer Lingus).The Airbus 320 was immaculate and cabin crew warmly welcomed passengers and guided them to their seats. All Aer Lingus short haul aircraft are economy class and seats are configured 3-3. This particular aircrafts seats were navy leather with adjustable headrests.
Inflight
The Captain gave a brief welcome, and details of flight times and routing, followed by a safety announcement. We pushed back on time, and were airborne by 8.00pm.
Once cruising altitude was reached, the crew began the inflight service. This is a paid for service, and there is a good range of food & drink on offer. I chose a toasted cheese & ham sandwich which was piping hot and went down a treat.
Given the two and a half hour flight time, the service is more relaxed than on (say) a Dublin UK flight which gives a very tighter timeframe. Lisa Blaney and her team went of their way to make sure everybody was looked after.
We landed in Dublin @ 10.45pm, slightly ahead of schedule, and after a short taxi were on stand. Deplaning was by an airbridge and there was a short walk to passport control. There was only a few minutes wait for baggage, and having parked in the new T2 surface car park, it took less than half an hour from leaving the aircraft to reaching our car.
Conclusion
A very impressive flight. Excellent service on board, which is the norm for Aer Lingus. Baggage collection was particularly efficient.
Aer Lingus have struck a good match between a low cost carrier model and offering a good level of service. This flight was approximately 75% full, so others share this view. Faro airport is small but very efficiently run and is a pleasant airport to use.
Booking and check in
This was the return flight of our trip to Faro, and our first time using Faro airport.
Portway are Aer Lingus handling agents, and are both efficient and friendly. Check in opened two hours prior to check in, and there were separate desks for Gold Circle/bag drop, and general check in. Before beginning the check in process, the staff outlined which desks passengers should approach, which avoided unnecessary delays. It took only minutes to drop off our bags, and we proceeded to security.
Being Sunday evening, it was relatively quiet, and we were airside almost immediately.
Faro airport has good shopping and dining facilities, with a particularly good duty free shop (available to all passengers).
Lounge
There is only one lounge in Faro operated by Servisair. It is small but comfortably furnished, and has its own restrooms. Complimentary wi-fi is available. There is a limited range of reading material.
The food on offer consists of:
Chilled cakes & pastries
Chilled sandwiches
Savoury nibbles
Biscuits
Whilst the range is limited, the food is good quality and replenished regularly.
A full range of soft and alcoholic drinks is available along with a nespresso machine.
Boarding
Passport control is almost directly outside the lounge, and as with security, there was no queue to speak of and we were at the departure gate within seconds. Priority Boarding is announced for Gold Circle and passengers in the forwardmost rows. However given that passengers are bussed to the aircraft, this is of value only if one is on the first (of two) coaches. As we were in row 2 and had two cabin bags to store, I was somewhat apprehensive that there would be no space available above our seats. As it happened, there were few passengers in the front rows, so there was plenty of space available.
The cabin crew were very welcoming (as is the norm for Aer Lingus).The Airbus 320 was immaculate and cabin crew warmly welcomed passengers and guided them to their seats. All Aer Lingus short haul aircraft are economy class and seats are configured 3-3. This particular aircrafts seats were navy leather with adjustable headrests.
Inflight
The Captain gave a brief welcome, and details of flight times and routing, followed by a safety announcement. We pushed back on time, and were airborne by 8.00pm.
Once cruising altitude was reached, the crew began the inflight service. This is a paid for service, and there is a good range of food & drink on offer. I chose a toasted cheese & ham sandwich which was piping hot and went down a treat.
Given the two and a half hour flight time, the service is more relaxed than on (say) a Dublin UK flight which gives a very tighter timeframe. Lisa Blaney and her team went of their way to make sure everybody was looked after.
We landed in Dublin @ 10.45pm, slightly ahead of schedule, and after a short taxi were on stand. Deplaning was by an airbridge and there was a short walk to passport control. There was only a few minutes wait for baggage, and having parked in the new T2 surface car park, it took less than half an hour from leaving the aircraft to reaching our car.
Conclusion
A very impressive flight. Excellent service on board, which is the norm for Aer Lingus. Baggage collection was particularly efficient.
Aer Lingus have struck a good match between a low cost carrier model and offering a good level of service. This flight was approximately 75% full, so others share this view. Faro airport is small but very efficiently run and is a pleasant airport to use.
