Aer Arann Islands (stylised as aer arann islands) is an Irish airline headquartered in Inverin, County Galway.[1] They operate a three-strong fleet of Britten-Norman BN-2 Islander aircraft to connect the Aran Islands with mainland County Galway.
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| Founded | 1970 (Galway); 53 years ago | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating bases | Connemara Airport | ||||||
| Fleet size | 3 | ||||||
| Destinations | 4 | ||||||
| Headquarters | Connemara Airport, Inverin, County Galway | ||||||
| Website | aerarannislands.ie | ||||||
History
editAer Arann Islands was established as Aer Arann in 1970 by James Coen, Ralph Langan, and Colie Hernon[2] to provide an island-hopping air service between Galway and the Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland. Operations, using a single Britten-Norman Islander, began in August 1970.
Aer Arann made a number of short-lived expansions, including summer service along the south and west coasts with a Short Sandringham flying boat from Killaloe in the late 1970s, and commuter service between Shannon and Dublin, and to the UK with Avair, in the 1980s.[3]
In 1994, Aer Arann was acquired by Pádraig Ó Céidigh and Eugene O'Kelly, who expanded it into a regional airline.[4] When the regional carrier was acquired by Stobart Group in the 2010s and became Stobart Air, the Aran Islands service was spun off to an independent Aer Arann Islands, remaining owned by Ó Céidigh until 2020.[5]
After Aer Arann Islands failed to win a tender for a four-year contract, the island flight service was threatened with closure on September 30, 2015. This was to be replaced by a helicopter service from Galway Airport. Protests about the airport change and job losses led to this decision being reversed, so Aer Arann Islands continued to fly to the islands.[6]
This service is now based at Connemara Airport and operates between ten and thirty flights to the three Aran islands with an average flight time of eight minutes. As of 2021[update], Aer Arann Islands prefers the Britten-Norman islander aircraft to provide this service.
As of January 2020[update] the airline is under new ownership with plans to develop and maintain the levels of service to both island communities and visitors. In 2022, the airline signed a four-year contract to provide year-round public service obligation (PSO) from Connemara Airport to all three Aran islands.[7]
Current fleet
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As of March 2022, Aer Arann Islands operate a fleet of 3 Britten Norman BN-2 aircraft. These are registered EI-AYN, EI-BCE and EI-CUW [8]
| Aircraft | In Service | Orders | Passengers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Britten-Norman Islander BN2A | 2 | – | 9 | |
| Britten-Norman Islander BN2B | 1 | – | 9 | |
| Total | 3 | 0 |
Destinations
editAer Arann Islands destinations
- Aran Islands
- Ireland (mainland)
- Inverin – Connemara Airport Base
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Contact." Aer Arann Islands. Retrieved 15 May 2016. "Address: Aer Arann Islands, An Caislean, Inverin, Co. Galway, Ireland."
- ^ "Ethos of a heroic airline". Irish Independent. 17 April 2016. Archived from the original on 19 December 2023.
- ^ "Aer Árann - 25 years serving the islands". Aer Arann. Archived from the original on 10 September 1999. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
- ^ O'Donohugh, Paul (12 November 2016). "Ex-Aer Arann boss: 'I was lucky to get out of the industry with my life and some money'". Fora. Ireland. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
- ^ Watkins, Marc (22 January 2020). "Ireland's Aer Arann Islands sold". ch-aviation. Retrieved 6 May 2024.
- ^ "Aran Islands Reprieve". Airliner World: 7. November 2015.
- ^ Moreau, Emer (5 June 2022). "€4.9 million contract announced for flights to the Aran Islands". thejournal.ie. Retrieved 26 March 2024.
- ^ Dwyer, Mark. "Aircraft Registrations". Flying In Ireland. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
Further reading
edit- "Aer Árann - 25 years serving the islands". Aer Arann. Archived from the original on 10 September 1999.
- "Aer Arann 1970 – 2004" (PDF). Aer Arann. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 October 2006.
External links
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