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The Daily PollIT WAS ANNOUNCED today that regional UK airline Flybe has ceased trading, with all flights immediately being cancelled.
The embattled airline first went into administration early in the Covid-19 pandemic as passenger numbers plummeted. Before this, it flew the most UK domestic routes between airports outside London.
Ireland is significantly smaller than Britain, but there are a number of carriers operating regional flights between Dublin and other counties, like Donegal and Kerry.
Domestic flights have come in for criticism from climate activists for the relatively high level of greenhouse gas emissions they cause.
However, the flights are popular among tourists and Irish people themselves, and can often be cheaper and faster than using the train.
So, today we’re asking: Do you ever take domestic flights in Ireland?
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Used to fly between Dublin and Cork when it was quicker and cheaper than the train.
@sean o’dhubhghaill: do ya still have to go through all the aerport queuing and stuff ??
@Dave Ryan: no…they just let you skip all the security and ticket checking ….
The only airport that would make sense is Donegal, as there are no direct train links to it.
@Geraldine O’Riordan: I wouldn’t say it’d have the footfall, as it is Knock or Belfast isn’t really that far away.
@Geraldine O’Riordan: Ryanair operate Dub – Kerry on a commercial basis and it’s half the price of the train.
I would prefer if more train lines were created for example a western corridor linking all the western counties from Donegal to Cork. Internal flights in such a small country just seems obscenely wasteful.
@Pete Gilmartin: I would deem a 30 minute flight hugely advantagous from Dublin to Kerry. When you consider the flight is cheaper, the flight is quicker by about 3.5 hours, and the flight does not require a change over, its a no brainer. The idea that a train service will alleviate our travel and transport woes is wishful thinking from idealists with no grasp on reality. 3.5 hour train journeys are for back packers and tourists. People conducting business need fast, reliable transport.
@Pete Gilmartin: Fully agreed Pete. However if a train was viable, it would already be there
I’ve never done it as I’d just take the car or train. Taking a plane to go somewhere internal has never crossed my mind. I’d love to do it some day though, with my 5 year old as it’d be an interesting experience.
@Liam Coyle: I only did it once, covering a colleague that could not make a meeting in Cork. I would normally drive but she had it booked. Cheaper than driving & your 5 year old would love it! Short trip, great airport down there, great experience for Jnr.
@Liam Coyle: we flew to Kerry to see how our then 3 year old would be like on a plane, didn’t bother him so then booked a flight to Spain.
Delays at Airports no longer make domestic flight time efficient. Drive or train.
Used to fly from Kerry to Dublin 17 years ago. It was much quicker than driving. Not much of a security checks back then
@Kandan Loganathan: I used to catch the 6.10 to Dublin. Parked the car at 6.00, and was on the plane when it left on time…
@Kandan Loganathan: I’m planning on flying to Kerry from Dublin in March, never took an internal flight before and our logic is that the drive is roughly 4.5 hours while flying only takes 40 minutes and is relatively cheap.
@Frank Cauldhame: actually only about 25 minutes flight time. Bit of a trek through Dublin airport when you land alright, but it takes all the hassle out of it. Cheaper than the train too. And you’re through Kerry airport in a couple of minutes.
@Seosamh Mac Cionnaith: Thanks Seosamh.
What a waste of emmissions. If it was America it might be justified just about but Ireland is way too small for that much waste of resources. Tá Éire ró-bheag
@Séan Ó Nuanáin: Yeah we get enough emissions already being third to US and China in passengers carried.
@Pat Barry: If you look at the data, Australia is second for per capita emissions on internal flights. There is a correlation between emissions, land mass, and wealth of a country, with outliers for New Zealand and Australia. Ireland is 79th. For comparison, the UK is 36th.
https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/per-capita-co2-domestic-aviation?tab=table
@Pat Barry: Wow
@Pat Barry: Your figures are wrong and have been pushed to scare people.
Flew to Kerry from Dublin on Ryanair a few years back, loved it and highly recommend it. Was a lovely way to get down, flight was only around 25-30 minutes.
I would like to try a trip to Donegal airport at least once. Its considered one of the most beautiful strips to land in the world, but more likely if that is a clear day.
Done Dublin Cork a few times when it was still flying. Was very handy way of getting home after a long flight when your just not able for the motorway. Done Kerry Dublin and Cork Galway also
I used to fly Sligo to Dublin regularly. Was a great service. You also had the option of getting a connecting flight further afield.
A new railway line connecting Derry, Letterkenny and Donegal town with Rosslare via Tullamore would be a big transport investment more imaginative than an increase in domestic flightpaths.
@Garreth Byrne: The capital cost of building that line would be massive and then it would need a large subsidy each year to run any trains on it as the demand (bar people traveling with free travel passes and the odd tourist) isn’t there.
@Garreth Byrne: More imaginative and more expensive. Green Party economics tax, spend, tax some more. It would take years to build and billion as well and then would lose money. More billions more tax.
I’ve flown Kerry to Dublin for a connection, far handier than getting from Heuston to the airport.
Now if there was a (much) better and more complete rail service…
I suspect that soon enough autonomous electric vehicles will make a huge difference to public transport.
I never used a domestic flight as i always thought everywhere is no more than a few hours drive or train ride away in this country
@Paul: but when you live next to cork airport, and going to north Dublin, and flight is 4.99…. We’ll back in the day prices
I’ve flown out of Dublin only twice since they stopped doing the Cork-Dublin routes.
If I can’t go to Dublin by road, there’s still the option of flying from Cork via Amsterdam. Wasteful? Not unless you book early flight down and late flight onward, with time for a fab lunch in Amsterdam. :D
Galway to Inis Mor. Lovely. To hear the Banshees. Could be the howling Atlantic gales though.
Yes, flying to the islands is a lot quicker and considering the amount of people who get seasick, a far more merciful option! As for overland flights, I wouldn’t want to do the longest drive with young children if there was a cheaper option in a fraction of the time. Why does Ireland still not have fast trains and a full network?
Arran island .. for the experience
Never done it but want to do kerry to Dublin
Being Scottish I visit me mam a lot so yes but aer lingus only do 2 flights a day and are mad times that leaves Ryan Air more options and flights by other operators are needed.
Back in the noughties, there were flights from Dublin to Sligo, Galway and, I think, Waterford. These all vanished when the PSO subsidies were scrapped after the financial crash. To take a domestic flight from Dublin means enduring Dublin airport with all the long security etc. time involved, which means that there is no point. Just take the train or bus.
I flew up and down to Tralee last week, it was very handy and reasonable.
The only issue is the hassle of dublin airport, if they moved the regional flights to Westin airport or somewhere it would make much more sense. Getting in and out of Tralee airport is like getting in and out of a dart station which is excellent!
@MB: Farranfore ?
Once Dublin to Sligo best approach ever
@ed w: I’m curious, what’s it like?
Regarding FlyBe, they had handy flights from Dublin to my favourite UK airport, Southampton. That airport will have big problems now as most of their flights,as far as I could see, were FlyBe.
I have but only as a connection after coming from further away. When you factor in the time it takes altogether, it’s almost never worth it
I flew on a commuter flight hop from Carnmore to Kilronan in the early 1980s.
A faint misty drizzle during weak Hallowe’en sunshine above Galway Bay caused a two-meter full-circle rainbow to form around the starboard propeller.
I was so entranced as I looked back at it from the copilot seat that I neglected to take my camera out of my rucksack to take a picture of the unique apparition, which I’ve regretted ever since.
* metre
I would take an internal flight if I could bring my car too and would have it there when I land.
Purely for the domestic part? Like I was visiting Kerry from Dublin? No. Airports have a huge overhead of security, boarding, deboarding etc.
But if I was living and Kerry and flying to New York, yes. I would be more inclined to fly from Kerry to Dublin and change, than drive all the way to Dublin just to avoid that flight. Especially since Dublin airport isn’t even connected by train.
I’d be curious how many people on these flights have a complete itinerary that is domestic. Maybe I’m wrong, but I’d guess a lot of passengers on these flights are transferring.
I used to fly above Offaly, near Edenderry.
I never had to fasten my seatbelt for landing because when we reached a certain altitude I would leap from the plane and descend under canopy after an exhilarating interval of freefall.
I highly recommended the flight.
I took a silent glider flight above Blessinton Lakes once.
There were magnificent sweeping views from the wideview cockpit of the Dublin–Wicklow mountain chain and the gleaming emerald Garden of Ireland, below.
Descending and landing without engine power was an amusing novelty.
I’d take a Cork to Belfast flight if it existed, seems just about far enough away to justify a route
I did a few times and it was brilliant, I was able to make time and meet people on schedule without a death defying drag race to Galway and Kerry. You are a lot sharper and fresher after a flight that a 4 hour drive.
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If there were more destinations from cork and other airports outside Dublin airport that would be a start. Painful to have to drive 5 hours or so to take a flight and even worse when coming back.
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