Aer Lingus celebrates the 16th Player – the Irish rugby supporters!

Aer Lingus surprises passengers sitting in the 16th row heading to Stade de France for the quarter final.

Aer Lingus is carrying thousands of Ireland supporters to France, Belgium and Amsterdam for the quarter final taking place in Paris this weekend.

Flight demand to Paris Charles de Gaulle on aerlingus.com increased by 2,222% in the 48 hours following the win against Scotland, when compared against the same time period last year.

1,381 additional seat capacity from Dublin, Cork and Shannon were made available following Ireland’s win over Scotland making a total of 5,902 seat capacity over the weekend for the match.

Aer Lingus, the Official Airline of the IRFU, continues to bring the Home Advantage to France as the airline celebrates the dedicated supporters affectionately known as the ‘16th Player’. To express appreciation for the passionate support that has fuelled the team’s success, Aer Lingus surprised passengers seated in the 16th row of Flight EI 524, travelling from Dublin to Paris Charles de Gaulle, this morning for the quarter finals. Each of these lucky passengers received a #16 Irish Rugby jersey, symbolising their role as a key player on the Irish team.

Following Ireland’s triumphant victory over Scotland, Aer Lingus saw a surge in flight demand to Paris, Charles de Gaulle. Within just 48 hours of the win, Aer Lingus saw a 2,222% increase in flight reservations to Paris, when compared to the same period in the previous year.

In response to the unprecedented demand, 1,381 additional seat capacity was added to the schedule to carry the excited supporters to this weekend’s match. Aer Lingus data shows that there are thousands of passengers booked on flights to Paris this weekend, with even more devoted supporters expected to travel over to France the following weekend should the team make it to the semi-final.

Aer Lingus will operate 30 flights to bring passengers to and from the match this weekend and has up to 140 flights weekly to France throughout September and October across thirteen routes. Additional flights have been added to destinations including Nantes, Bordeaux and Paris and given the demand among Irish fans to travel to France, some flights will be operated by a larger A330 aircraft which would typically fly to North America. The airline also recently announced it will be operating flights to Paris from both Shannon and Cork airport from September 22nd boosting regional connectivity for travelling fans.

Susanne Carberry, Aer Lingus Chief Customer Officer, said; “Ireland rugby fans are travelling in their tens of thousands to be part of this special sporting occasion and we are proud to play a part in their rugby world cup experience. The flights have been filled with joy, excited anticipation and immense pride for our team, and we look forward to flying thousands of Ireland supporters to Stade de France this weekend to bring #HomeAdvantage of the 16th Player to the Irish team.”

For further information please visit www.aerlingus.com