The Irish flag carrier 
Aer Lingus
has confirmed it will offer more seats from Belfast City Airport this winter than ever before. Emerald Airlines, the biggest carrier at the airport this year, will operate the regional flights.
A Belfast boost
The newly unveiled winter schedule features over 450,000 seats from George Best Belfast City Airport
(BHD) in Northern Ireland, marking the highest capacity ever offered in the history of the Aer Lingus Regional network. The announcement comes alongside Aer Lingus’ September sale, which offers discounts of up to 30% off the entire Aer Lingus Regional network from Belfast.
The flights are operated by Emerald Airlines
on behalf of Aer Lingus and will connect Belfast’s city center to ten destinations this winter. The most popular routes, Southampton, Leeds, and Edinburgh, will all receive additional flights. Ellie McGimpsey, Aviation Development Manager at Belfast City Airport, noted the convenience of the airport in comparison to the larger Belfast International and highlighted the popularity of the Aer Lingus flights:
“With more capacity than ever before, and over 450,000 seats available, we are committed to working with Aer Lingus Regional to provide our passengers with seamless connectivity across the UK.
“Aer Lingus Regional is a popular choice for passengers at Belfast City Airport, and with its brilliant service and extensive range of destinations, the airline has built a strong base from the heart of Belfast.
“Our efficient security processing times and excellent location only five minutes from Belfast city centre, coupled with Aer Lingus Regional’s outstanding punctuality results, means passengers planning a winter getaway can look forward to the fastest start to their journey from Belfast City Airport.”
Aer Lingus and its regional franchise do not serve Belfast International Airport (BFS), the city’s primary international gateway.
Where can you fly from Belfast City?
Emerald Airlines opened its Belfast City base in 2022 and has already flown over one million customers from the airport across its various regional routes. The carrier launched operations with links to six destinations across the UK: Birmingham, Edinburgh, Exeter, Glasgow, Leeds Bradford, and Manchester.
These routes were followed by the announcement of flights to Cardiff (CLW) and Southampton (SOU), which followed in June. Last spring, Aer Lingus began flights from Belfast City to East Midlands (EMA) and Newcastle International Airport (NCL) following the collapse of regional operator Flybe. Shortly thereafter, the carrier began serving Cornwall Airport Newquay (NQY) in the southwest of England.
The three routes receiving a boost this winter, Southampton, Leeds, and Edinburgh, face no direct competition. The airport’s second-largest operator, easyJet
, offers the only competing flight this winter with its daily service to Manchester (MAN). The full schedule can be found below:
Photo: GCMap.com
All the flights are operated using the ATR 72-600, of which Emerald Airlines has ten (plus one inactive model, registered EL-FSL), according to data from ch-Aviation. Ian Lough, Head of Commercial at Emerald Airlines, noted how the additional frequencies will offer increased flexibility for travelers over the coming months:
“Our commitment to providing enhanced connectivity to and from Belfast is reflected in our Winter schedule.
“Whether travelling for business or leisure, our customers will benefit from more options, greater flexibility, and now, significant savings with the Aer Lingus September sale, with up to 30% off for the remainder of the week.”
Photo: Emerald Airlines
Several of the routes do have indirect competition from the nearby Belfast International
, with Ryanair serving Edinburgh and Leeds Bradford and easyJet offering multiple flights from the larger airport.