I just bought tickets to fly in and out of Dublin on Aer Lingus. I have not been to Ireland in almost 20 years, and the last time I went we flew Aer Lingus. Since I was a young child then, I don't remember much about the flights, but my mother considers it to be one of the worst she's ever experienced. Does anyone else have a comment to make about Aer Lingus?

Hi Mary,I've flown Aer Lingus twice from New York,each time we flew into Dublin and out of Shannon.Our first trip was uneventful(we were on an organized tour).On our second trip we had two problems,when we arrived in Dublin we discovered that my luggage was still in New York(the wife's was ok).It took 3 days before my luggage reached me in the town of Cashel.The second problem was the return flight home,after the plane loaded and started to taxi the electric shut down and we sat without ventilation for a little more than 2 hours before we were allowed back to the terminal.A replacement aircraft finally was made available and we arrived in NYC almost 4 hours late,then the fun really began!Mostly everyone on the flight was connecting elsewhere and of course missed their flights and it seems that Aer Lingus did'nt prepare in NYC as they had only one person working the counter to attempt and reroute the whole plane load of dissed off people.That fiasco added another couple of hours to what had already been a loooooongggg day.I guess you can tell I'll fly with another carrier on my next trip.Sorry for the long story. Adios !!

Dear Mary, <BR>I have flown on several Aer Lingus flights in the last couple of years. My experience has ranged from uneventful to truly awful. Unfortunately, the last flight was the worst. I was delayed on the runway in Newark with my family in the middle of july for several hours with the engines turned off. We were not allowed to leave our seats at all. We were soaked with perspiration. The crew would not turn on the air conditioning. When we were finally aloft we had to refuel in Bangor Maine. Again the engines were shut off and we delayed even further. We were hours late and still damp when we arrived in Shannon. My letters and emails to Aer Lingus were met with form letters. Unfortunately, there are not many choices in direct flights. I am planning another trip in September will probably book Aer Lingus again but I will do so with much trepidation, hoping that our last experience was not the norm. <BR>Patty

Flew Aer Lingus with 3 kids when we were rerouted due to last year's Air France strike. Planes were essentially on time, food was good, flight attendants just as cheery and friendly as could be. Our only complaint was that is was cold on the plane at night.

Aer Lingus was the best! Lost luggage and delays are going to happen with every airline. Don't let that discourage you. The entire crew, atmosphere and overall experience with Aer Lingus was fantastic. If you asked people, "How is the weather in Ireland?" some people actually would say, we hated it, it rained.

I understand that lost luggage and delays are a possibility when you fly. But one of the things that I was really upset about was the callous attitude overall, from the flight attendents to the main office at Aer Lingus.

Only flown with them once but it was a good flight, excellent crew, and adequate meals. <BR>

I'd like to know if they are really passing the collection plate down the aisles for the United Nations. I heard that Liam Neeson was spearheading a campaign to do this on Air Lingus flights. Has anyone experienced this?

I have flown with Aer Lingus twice. I have only experienced friendly, cheerful people that have fallen over themselves to help passengers. On my first trip, my luggage was lost somewhere. It took the airline about six hours to find it, but they had someone deliver it to where I was staying. I was just happy to be in Ireland. I think that you will always find people who have had bad experiences but that happens on every airline.

I am flying into Shannon and out of Dublin in a month, using Continental direct from Newark. The fare was great, and I got an additional 50% bonus milage for booking an E-Ticket direct with Continental. I will let you know how the flight goes.

Aer Lingus is one of the best airlines I have flown. The plane was modern and clean, the staff was friendly and helpful. The prices can't be beat from Chicago. <BR> <BR>Enjoy your trip!

Aer Lingus is one of the best airlines I have flown. The plane was modern and clean, the staff was friendly and helpful. The prices can't be beat from Chicago. <BR> <BR>Enjoy your trip!

We flew Aer Lingus in June from Boston and it was great. Good food, good staff. Yes they are asking for donations for Unicef but there is no hard sell. They don;t charge for headsets so it didn't seem like a problem to donate money. They have a great system to get you back into the states. <BR>We were bumped off our flight from New York to Pittsburgh via Trans American West and believe me they didn't care a bit about anything. <BR>Darlene <BR>

Mary, my wife and I flew Aer Lingus in September and it was wonderful. The crew were friendly and attentive and they went out of their way to see we had an enjoyable flight. And yes, Unicef donations are accepted but there is no pressure to give at all.

ARe we talking about the "donate your leftover foreign change" to Unicef here? How could anyone object to the airlines doing that? Most of us come back with some change and if we put it all together, it might do some good for Unicef. I can't imagine an objection! I also would love to know what percent of the blame for lost luggage should be put on the individual airline and what part is the fault of the airport. We have had about a 50% lost luggage experience from JFK, whereas from SFO we've never had lost luggage. I think we are too quick to blame the airlines rather than the airport. Aer Lingus is a perfectly acceptable airlines with a good safety record and most of the attendants have been pleasant and efficient. Food service depends on where the flight originates and how much the airline wants to spend per passenger. Many airlines share the same caterers. There are bound to be bad apples, but what I've heard lately is that the worst of the big airlines is British.

I fly with Aer Lingus at least once a month. They are (without doubt) the best airline with whom I have ever flown in economy class. Their business/first class cannot, however, compete with the likes of Virgin Atlantic.

I've flown them several times from Chicago & never had a problem. The crews were very friendly & helpful. If you can believe it, my last flight into Shannon arrived an hour EARLY!!

I've only flown AL once, roundtrip, but loved it. I usually hate flying, but for some reason felt very comfortable on those flights. (Maybe it was little plaid lap warmers that did it.) The flight attendents were friendly, as least for busy flight attendants. And, as others above have noted, they did collect for Unicef, on the flight back to the States, which I thought was a tremendous idea. Hope your flight is as good as mine was!

Let's start with some facts: <BR>1. ALL AILINE FOOD IN COACH S**CKS! <BR>2. ALL FLIGHT ATTENDANTS IN COACH ARE OVERWORKED, UNDERPAID, AND UNDERAPPRECIATED. <BR> <BR>With that said, our r/t on Aer Lingus last March was fine. I didn't give any money to UNICEF (personal beliefs) and wasn't pressured to do so. We also arrived early (flying into and out of Chicago ORD) in Dublin. <BR>My family who lives in Ireland prefer Aeroflot, but I've never flown them, so I can't say. Royal Jordanian also flys from ORD, but again, no personal experience. <BR>We're flying AA into london in two weeks and hope they've reconfigured our 777 according to their news release yesterday! <BR>You'll love Ireland regardless of how you get there!

Aer Lingus flights we took two years ago were awful. Cabin was cold, dinner was served at 12:30 in the morning, attendants were surly. <BR> <BR>Our reservations were screwed up both ways - in spite of a trip to Shannon to "make sure they were straightened out". <BR> <BR>Only 2 good things about the trips: <BR>1. The guy in the chaos of Dublin airport who finally got the reservations straightened out got us good seats and <BR>2. the man in customer relations who finally read my letter sent me a nice reply and a voucher for $100. <BR> <BR>The voucher has gone unused because i wouldn't fly them again.