It’s just gotten a little easier for Irish people to travel to America

Starting from March.

Aer Lingus announced their 2018 summer schedule on Wednesday and it featured a brand new direct route to Philadelphia. The new Dublin to Philadelphia route will begin operating year round on March 25, 2018 and will operate four times per week. Summer 2018 will mark Aer Lingus’ largest ever long-haul programme and there's an additional 177,000 seats for transatlantic flights. The airline’s transatlantic expansion will also include a daily service to both San Francisco and Los Angeles in California as well twice daily flights to Chicago. Miami and Orlando combined, operating four times weekly, will offer a direct connection from Ireland to Florida every day. Dublin Airport Managing Director, Vincent Harrison said he was delighted that Aer Lingus is further expanding its transatlantic services from Dublin Airport. "Philadelphia will be Aer Lingus’ 11th transatlantic route from Dublin Airport, offering further choice and flexibility for business and leisure passengers on both sides of the Atlantic,” he said. "Dublin Airport’s transatlantic traffic has increased by 67% in the past five years and Dublin is now the fifth largest airport in Europe for North American connectivity after Heathrow, Paris, Frankfurt and Amsterdam." Aer Lingus’ new service to Philadelphia will be operated by a 177-seat Boeing 757 aircraft. The route will operate four times per week from March 25 on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. It will depart Dublin Airport at 1.50pm, arriving in Philadelphia at 4.15pm. The return flight will depart Philadelphia at 5.30pm, arriving at Dublin at 5.30am the next day.