Emerald Airlines is an Irish

regional airline A regional airline is a general classification of airline which typically operates scheduled passenger air service, using regional aircraft, between communities lacking sufficient demand or infrastructure to attract mainline flights. In North ...

headquartered in Dublin, on the grounds of

Dublin Airport Dublin Airport () is an international airport serving Dublin, Ireland. It is operated by DAA (formerly Dublin Airport Authority). The airport is located in Collinstown, north of Dublin, and south of the town of Swords. In 2024, over 34 ...

. In August 2021, the airline became the operator of the Aer Lingus Regional franchise, before operations launched on 26 February 2022.

History

On 6 November 2020, it was reported that Emerald Airlines was bidding to operate the Aer Lingus Regional franchise, with the winning airline to operate flights under the franchise beginning in January 2023. The airline had also submitted an application for an Irish Air Carrier Operating Licence. The following week, it was announced that

Aer Lingus Aer Lingus ( ; an anglicisation of the Irish language, Irish , meaning "air fleet") is an Irish airline company which is the flag carrier of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Founded by the Irish Government, it was privatised between 2006 and 201 ...

had chosen Emerald as the preferred operator of the franchise, with agreements on the deal expected to be finalised in early 2021. Following the June 2021 liquidation of

Stobart Air Stobart Air was an Irish regional airline based in Dublin, originating in 1970 and closing in 2021. It operated scheduled services under the brands Aer Lingus Regional, BA CityFlyer and KLM Cityhopper on behalf of their respective owners. Sto ...

, the previous operator of the Aer Lingus Regional franchise, Emerald Airlines hoped to start operations as early as October 2021, ahead of the original January 2023 operating date. Subsequently, Emerald was officially signed as the Aer Lingus Regional franchise operator in August 2021, and received its

air operator's certificate An air operator's certificate (AOC) is the approval granted by a civil aviation authority (CAA) to an aircraft operator to allow it to use aircraft for commercial air transport purposes. This requires the operator to have personnel, assets and s ...

(AOC) in September 2021. On 17 December 2021, Aer Lingus announced that franchised regional flights operated by Emerald would launch starting on 17 March 2022. Additionally, Emerald established a subsidiary company in Northern Ireland, incorporated as Emerald Airlines UK, and applied for an AOC in the United Kingdom with the UK CAA. On 7 January 2022, it was announced that Emerald had been awarded a PSO contract to operate a route between Donegal and Dublin from 26 February 2022, prior to its original March launch.

Destinations

, Emerald Airlines operates to the following destinations under the Aer Lingus Regional franchise:

Airline partnership

Emerald Airlines currently has a franchise partnership with the Irish flag carrier

Fleet

Current fleet

, Emerald Airlines operates the following aircraft:

Fleet development

Emerald's first aircraft order was an agreement to lease six

ATR 72-600 The ATR 72 is a twin-engine turboprop, short-haul regional airliner developed and produced in France and Italy by aircraft manufacturer ATR. The number "72" in its name is derived from the aircraft's typical standard seating capacity of 72 pass ...

s from

Chorus Aviation Chorus Aviation is a Canadian holding company which owns regional airlines Jazz Aviation LP and Voyageur Airways as well as lessor Chorus Aviation Capital. It was founded in 2006 as Jazz Air Income Fund, when then parent company ACE Aviation ...

on 23 August 2021, which consisted of ATRs formerly operated by

and

Virgin Australia Regional Airlines Virgin Australia Regional Airlines (VARA) is an Australian regional airline based in Perth, servicing key towns in the state of Western Australia. The airline also flies interstate to destinations such as Adelaide, Darwin, Northern Territory, ...

. On 4 October 2021, the airline leased an additional four ATR 72-600s from

Nordic Aviation Capital Nordic Aviation Capital (NAC) was the world leader in regional aircraft leasing and expanded into larger narrow body aircraft as well. NAC was headquartered in Ireland, with offices in Singapore, Denmark, Dubai and Toronto. It had over 60 custom ...

References

{{Airlines of the Republic of Ireland Airlines of the Republic of Ireland Airlines established in 2020 2020 establishments in Ireland