Aer Lingus

Traveled with Aer lingus in May 2013 from London to Belfast City. Aer Lingus were punctual as I have always found on this route and the staff were pleasant enough. A major complaint is the terrible leg room their Airbus 319's which they received from Iberia. These aircraft are only just bearable for a shorter journey. I also found there to be too many in flight announcements selling food and goods. British Airways is the alternate option on this route and whilst their punctuality is not as good as Aer Lingus - every other feature is.

Had a disappointing start to our holiday! Delayed 2 hours from Manchester to Dublin no one kept us updated and when we got on the aircraft it was filthy! Never flown with Aer Lingus before and don't plan on flying with them again!

We flew Boston Logan to Dublin and Shannon to Boston on Aer Lingus. It was our first experience on this airline and we were very pleased. The planes were A330-200s and were clean and in good condition. Very good entertainment choices. Food was standard airline fare. I didn't order the upgraded meal because I didn't think it would be any better but from comments that I've heard next time I probably will next time. Flight attendants were friendly.

On the Dublin to Chicago flight on the Friday returning Tuesday late afternoon. Nothing bad at all outbound on time departure and arrival flight crew were excellent ordered the "Extra " menu for Euro and it was worth every penny. Flight back you cannot order the extra menu which is a great shame again the flight crew were open friendly and very professional - flight left late and arrived very early. Couldn't fault them at all - spot on. Well done to Aer Lingus.

April 27 2013 we took an A330 Airbus from Dublin to Orlando direct. The food was the best I have had on an airline. All flight attendants were cheerful and courteous. The only complaint is that at Dublin airport our boarding passes stated that the gate closed at 10.55 am even though our flight did not leave until 12.40 pm. I do not appreciate being given misleading information like that even if the airline is only doing it to get the slackers to show up on time. I say leave them a couple of times when they are late and they will learn to be on time and not cause the rest of us to show up at the gate only to sit for almost two more hours after already spending two hours going through security and customs! Also the seat cushions on the plane are getting too compressed to have a comfortable trip lasting 9 hours. The seat cushions should be replaced with new ones.

No real complaints about the flight or in service facilities. Main complaint is about the badly designed website. I was flying Shannon to Boston and then on to Tampa with JetBlue. AL kept emailing me to complete the "Additional Information Required". However their website kept rejecting my booking reference. Tried to email them (no reply). Tried over 3 days to telephone AL kept getting recorded messages. Spent at least 1 hour trying to get through to a "person". Eventually did to be told my booking reference was rejected as I was flying on to another destination (Tampa). Then she took the additional info and did it for me. Seems this is a routine problem! AL also could not print off Jetblue boarding card Jetblue referred me back to AL.

LHR to Cork return. On time departure from Heathrow and early arrival into Cork. Early Departure from Cork and on stand 20 mins early into Heathrow. Clean cabin each way and efficient (if a bit brusque) cabin crew. Had reasonably priced drinks on the way out only with the bar service prompt and fast. We paid extra for row 1 which was worth every penny. The only downside was oversize bags in the cabin along with perhaps half of the plane breaking the one piece of hand baggage rule leading to no space in the overhead bins. On a par price wise with other competitors on the route (once extras are added in) but overall my preferred choice between London and Cork with good legroom pleasant staff and a reserved seat.

JFK-SNN-JFK. Excellent flights in both directions. Cabin crew very professional and attentive. Found the check-in process at JFK terminal 5 with JetBlue staff to be extremely slow. Check-in at Shannon was excellent and very efficient. Clearing USA customs in Shannon saved a lot of time and aggravation that I have experienced coming in from other European countries.

DUB-BRU-DUB good service and great value for money on this route. A321 almost 15 years old but clean and comfortable with excellent leather seats and adjustable head-rest. Ground service was competent and speedy and cabin crew were friendly professional and well groomed engaging with passengers. There is a newly updated menu with drinks and snacks available to purchase. I was disappointed to see that there is a now a more limited selection than previous versions of the menu but prices are still keen and quality is very good. All in all vastly superior to Ryanair when flying from Ireland to Belgium.

I travelled from Dublin to Boston and Boston to Dublin (23-26 April 2013). I have been positively surprised. Pretty new A330-202 good entertainment good food. The only weak point was the readiness of the staff in Dublin to solve a problem with ESTA Visa. Fortunately I was able to find a helpful person at Aer Lingus at the end.