Drinking a glass of Old Forester 1924 to cheer you on from the other side of the pond. Smart packing! I am glad you are heading to greener pastures than that Cabana whisk(e)y list, Bulleit is a tragic offering for a place of that stature.

I absolutely agree, but it’s one of the Diageo brands and the only bourbon they own, so unlikely to change. Personally I prefer a little less rye, but it makes a perfectly passable old fashioned

Down to gate A1 in plenty of time and presented myself at the side of the gate and straight through with the preboards. Shortly thereafter there was a clear automated call for group 0, the first time I�ve heard that at Heathrow.




Two minutes wait and boarding started�

Well, almost� #boardingnotboarding



Didnt have long to wait and then it was time to board. The crew this morning have just come in from Newcastle so I could have made it on the early flight, but that was a little too much risk for my taste

As mentioned before, row 3 for this one and a very tight fit



I�ve asked the crew to give me the nod if there is a row 1 no show but I doubt that I�ll get that lucky.

G-TTNT this morning, which I have been on board once before over 18 months ago on a NCL-LHR



And it will be a long 90 minutes, screaming child in 2F

On the bright side, 1D is a no show�. This is much better



And an announcement that wifi is broken this morning�. Let the whinging commence

Next Stop: Dublin in a little over an hour and a half�s time.

Pushback started exactly on time at 08:20 so hopefully an on time arrival. I’m not too bothered as I have nearly three hours to turnaround at Dublin so I’ll probably head landside to get a full tour of the airport, it’s been a while since I’ve been here.

In the end it was another long slow taxi this morning and fully twenty five minutes before we eventually took off. We were up and in the clouds very quickly and it was a bumpy couple of minutes whilst we made our ascent through the clouds.

Service commenced as soon as the seatbelt light was off. Having only just had breakfast in the CCR I wasn’t particularly hungry and so I went for the charcuterie plate for something to pick at, accompanied by two of the standard in flight trio. No hot drinks yet as it was a little bumpy and the seat belt light was back on seconds after it was turned off, and it stayed on for the first half of the flight. There was a coffee service later in the flight once the seat belt light was off.




A workmanlike crew this morning who had the cabin served and cleared fairly quickly and then closed to curtain for the remainder of the flight.

Ten minutes to landing announcement came at 09:35 and we were on the ground a little over that ten minute mark. Now trundling around Dublin airport on the way to the gate.

And here we are, Dublin airport and possibly the most uninviting arrivals walk ever.









The tunnels are not as bright as the photos suggest, that’s the iPhone compensating for the gloom!

One last look at this morning plane as it prepares to turnaround



Now to turn around and head back in

Back in and it’s quick and easy to departures




A quick check on duty free, far from the worst prices I’ve ever seen




Into the Air Lingus lounge





Absolutely packed and about as basic an offering as it gets

Nope!

Priority pass to the rescue, into the Liffey lounge

Also very busy but a far more appealing F&B offering








They’re just switching to lunch as I arrived




A couple of macarons and a piece of that lovely looking tray bake should keep the wolf from the door

Enjoy your trip and taste as much bourbon as you can 🥃

Good morning! See you are busy enjoying everything the airports have to offer!

You had the same plane to DUB I had from there.

With 45 minutes to departure I have made my way to gate 307A because the soporific piano music in the lounge was doing its job and lulling me to sleep. A small beer in the bar whilst I wait for boarding



The inbound has only just landed so I’ll give it ten minutes then wander over to the gate to ask about group 0

G-TTNE this time and finally a new one to cross off the list, first time on board.



The gate experience seemed incredibly chaotic at first sight and watching the gate agents pre- checkin the families with infants, try to gather baggage from groups 5-9, and fend off a couple of group 2’s that wanted to head on board first it was all a bit comic opera. But, to give them thier due, in the end the was a clear call for Group 0 and a decent delay before they called group 1 so they got there in the end.

Now on board in seat 1A for a change and a have been chatting a little to the crew, they’re on day 4 of 5 and this is their second and final flight of the day. And since sitting myself down I’ve been chatting with Mr 1C who was in 1B to avoid the boarding battering, a strategy I wholly agree with.

There is a grizzling child a few rows behind constantly wailing”I don’t like it!”…. Well, neither do I!

Next Stop: Back to Heathrow in about an hour and a half’s time

Enjoy your trip mate! Cheers in bubbles from TG950 - I can confirm that the grass is, in fact, greener on the other side!

Enjoy your 10:30 of unrivalled luxury, sounds amazing!

It was yet another really slow taxi and in the end we were off the ground over thirty minutes after our scheduled push back time.

A beautiful sunny departure and pretty clear skies as we flew out over the water.

An easy flight back and we have just landed at 14:08. I didn’t bother with lunch, just a glass of champagne and a coffee. I spent most of the flight chatting to Mr 1C and the flight passed pleasantly and quickly.