Bluegrass Airlines, September 2009

Aer Lingus

By Allan Lowson

(image copyright Bjorn Larsson www.timetableimages.com)

Aer Lingus

As this September is the 250^th. Anniversary of the founding of the Guinness Brewery in Dublin, we are looking at some of the early routes to and from Dublin of Aer Lingus and the preceding Irish Sea Airways.

Irish Sea Airways was a joint operation up to 1939 between Aer Lingus, Teoranta of Eire and West Coast Airways of the United Kingdom. This operated until 1946, when Aer Lingus was given sole rights to the traffic between the UK and the Republic of Ireland.

We have details of the 1939 flights between Dublin and London, and Dublin and Ronaldsway in the Isle of Man.

The flight to London used the four-engined de Havilland DH-86, with a stop in Bristol. The London airport used in 1939 was Croydon. This airport is now closed, and so we have used the nearby Biggin Hill airfield in the route listing. If you download the Vintage London Airports package from www.flightsim.com then you can substitute Croydon as your London base.

The flight to Ronaldsway used the de Havilland DH-89.

From the 1947 timetable we have the flights from Dublin to Shannon, on the west coast of Ireland, to Liverpool, to Paris and London Northolt. All these flights used the DC-3.

1939 Irish Seas Airways Routes

These routes and times were taken from the 1939 timetable of Bjorn Larsson on www.timetableimages.com.

Dublin – Bristol - London Route

Heading	Distance	Down	City Name	ICAO	Up	Heading	Distance
140	0	0930	Dublin	EIDW	1730ar		177.9 nm
096	177.9 nm	1100ar	Bristol	EGGD	1630	320	103.0 nm
	103.0 nm	1200ar	London (Croydon)	EGKB	1530	277	0

Dublin – Isle of Man Route

Heading	Distance	Down	City Name	ICAO	Up	Heading	Distance
062		0945	Dublin	EIDW	1215ar		69.6 nm
	69.6 nm	1045ar	Ronaldsway	EGNS	1115	243

1947 Aer Lingus Routes

These routes, times and mileages were taken from the 1947 timetable of Bjorn Larsson on www.timetableimages.com.

Dublin - London Route

Heading	Distance	Down	City Name	ICAO	Up	Heading	Distance
123	0	0810	Dublin	EIDW	1610ar		240.3 nm
	240.3 nm	1010ar	London (Northolt)	EGWU	1410	305	0

Dublin - Liverpool Route

Heading	Distance	Down	City Name	ICAO	Up	Heading	Distance
099	0	1630	Dublin	EIDW	1535ar		121.2 nm
	121.2 nm	1730ar	Liverpool	EGGP	1435	280	0

Dublin – Shannon Route

Heading	Distance	Down	City Name	ICAO	Up	Heading	Distance
254	0	1045	Dublin	EIDW	1750ar		106.4 nm
	106.4 nm	1145ar	Shannon	EINN	1650	073	0

Dublin – Paris Route

Heading	Distance	Down	City Name	ICAO	Up	Heading	Distance
134	0	0900	Dublin	EIDW	1650ar		421.9 nm
	421.9 nm	1200ar	Paris (Le Bourget)	LFPB	1350	316	0

Flight Simulator Files

There are only two early Aer Lingus schemes for the donationware MAAM-SIM DC-3. Both are available from www.classicbritishfiles.com - just search for aer lingus in the files, the two are at the top and bottom of the first search results page.

The DH-86 is available from the BGA hangar. It does not have a GPS, but is stable enough in the cruise that you can take time out to unfold the map and see where you are going!

The DH-89a is also available from www.classicbritishfiles.com in fs9_dh89.zip

Croydon airport is not one of the defaults as it is now closed, but is contained in the Vintage London Airways package vla.zip which is available from www.flightsim.com