Aer Lingus

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Please note. The information here is predominately intended for the DUB-MCO route and whilst some of the information may be applicable to other trans atlantic routes, please check yourself. Although I have made every effort to ensure all the below is accurate, things can change all the time, so please verify yourself before making any costly decisions (be that money or time)


Aer Lingus fly non-stop from Dublin to Orlando 3 times a week, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. They have historically dropped the Thursday flight during the winter months, but at the moment it looks like Thursday is becoming a year round part of the schedule.
Current timetable valid from April to September 2018 now has 4 flights a week. Monday has been added in.


Flight Details
From Dublin, EI121. Departs at 14:10, arriving in MCO at 18:30. (Duration 9h 20m)
From Orlando, EI120. Departs at 20:30, arriving in DUB at 09:50 (+1) (Duration 8h 20m)


US Pre-Clearance
One of the great benefits of travelling from Dublin is US Preclearance. This essentially means that you do US Immigration & Customs in Dublin Airport before you even get on the plane. On arrival in the US you will disembark as a domestic passenger, collect your luggage and leave. It really is as simple as that. There are a few things to note:

Your first landing MUST be in the US. You will NOT get to pre-clear if you fly DUB-LHR-MCO for example.
The plane MUST be originating from Dublin, if it's on a stop on the way from gulf for instance, and you join the flight in Dublin, again you will NOT pre-clear
You still MUST do your ESTA
You still fill in the Customs Declaration Form
Dublin Airport website has a lot of information, including a video, here

(All of this is not peculiar to Aer Lingus, any flights to the US meeting the requirements are entitled to this)

Transiting
If you are transiting through Dublin airport on a single ticket your luggage will be checked through to your final destination. At US preclearance you will be shown them on the screen and asked to confirm that they are yours. All single ticketed travel currently only goes through T2. There is no transit from T1 to T2. You have to collect your luggage, come out through customs, walk to the other terminal and checkin/bagdrop. The walkway between the 2 terminals is located at the departures level.

Planes
Aer Lingus use the Airbus A330-300 on the DUB-MCO route. There are standard wide body jets in 2 class configuration, business and economy.

Plane type 1
This is the most common and has 30 business class (lie flat) seats and 287 economy class seats. Seats 3K and 5K (for those lucky enough to travel in BC have become known as the 'Captain Kirk' seats.


Economy class is mostly 2-4-2 configuration, with some 2-3-2 at the very back.


Plane type 2
This has 24 business class (lie flat) seats and 289 economy. It has what has become know as the mini-cabin for economy class. This a small section of the plane between the door and business class and contains 11 economy seats. The best comparison I can think is the ubiquitous bubble on the Boeing747 of which many dibbers are so fond of. Aer Lingus do not have a link to the seat layout for this on their website (but I did find a picture, below), so perhaps they are phasing it out

Type 1 seat layout


Type 2 seat layout


Seating
Aer Lingus allow you to pre-select your seats in advance without charge at booking. Additionally they have 2 types of seats that you pay for, Exit Row and Choice Seats (shown in light green and orange respectively in the map above)

IFE
All economy seats have seatback IFE, except exit rows which are in the armrest as normal. IFE will generally have 3 of the latest movies plus another 10 or so. Additionally there are TV boxsets, comedy, drama, sport, documentaries etc. There is also a music selection and some pre-recorded radio slots. Games are available too.
Business class get bigger screens and some additional choices.

WIFI
WiFi is free for business class travelers and available for purchase for economy. Charges (Feb 2016) are
Aer Lingus Wi-Fi 1 hour pass: €7.95/$9.95
Aer Lingus Wi-Fi Full flight pass: €14.95/$18.95

Headphones
Headphones are supplied FOC on all transatlantic flights some planes have the standard 1 prong type, so personal headphones can be used without any adapter. However some planes still have the 2 prong type so an adapter is needed to use personal headphones. If in doubt would recommend purchasing an adapter which is easily obtained from Amazon.

Meals
For Economy standard meals, it's pretty standard fare. However meal upgrades are available for purchase. As of Feb 2016 these ranged from €22 to €25 and covered Chicken, Salmon and Steak. I have never personally had these myself, but every report I have seen or heard of them has been positive. My understanding is that they are the Business Class meal, they certainly look far better than the economy meal

Check out their website here.

Also available Guidebook page on Dublin Airport