Review: Crossing the Irish Sea to London on Aer Lingus in 2012

It’s a mixture of amusement (at my writing), irritation (at some of the godawful pictures) and interest (in how much remains the same today) that I feel whenever I look through an old trip report. This one is about an Aer Lingus service from Dublin to London Heathrow in 2012, as published at the time. Enjoy!

When I woke at 3:45am, I snoozed my phone and it didn’t even cross my mind that I was going to be travelling that day – I was that tired! When it went off again minutes later, I remembered why it was still dark and got myself up and ready to go. I finished my last minute packing and wandered down the road to the cab rank and took a taxi to the airport. I always enjoy the drive at that time of the morning, as most of the city is asleep.

On arrival at Dublin Airport about 5:15am, I took note of the large queues of passengers at the Aer Lingus area waiting to check-in for their flights. I hold a Gold Circle card (Aer Lingus’ Frequent Flyer programme) so I took myself to the Gold Circle/Business Class desk. After a 30 second wait, I was seen by a very friendly agent who gave me boarding passes for both this flight and my flight to Washington, and tagged my bag all the way through. I was also advised that upon arrival at Heathrow, I should stay on board as the transfer passengers would leave through the rear door to the transfer bus. I already knew this, but it was great to see that it was communicated effectively.

The Aer Lingus Gold Circle Lounge

Another benefit of holding a Gold Circle card is fast-track security in Dublin, so I was straight through and immediately took myself to the Gold Circle Lounge. It was completely packed full of people, but I found a seat and got myself some fruit salad to snack on while I waited.

After a short while, it was time to go to gate 409. You can see from the next shot that this is the area where you go downstairs for US pre-clearance if you’re flying directly from Dublin. Unfortunately, I wouldn’t get to do this as I was going via Heathrow.

EI152 – Dublin to London Heathrow
4 October 2012
Airbus A320 – EI-DEN – St. Kieran
Seat: Economy 6A
Departure: 06:40 Arrival: 08:05

Boarding was called and I was first on the aircraft. Throughout boarding there were many announcements advising people stowing their cabin baggage to step in from the aisles, and that it was a busy flight this morning so please stow coats and small bags under the seat in front.

Flying To London

Okay, so how about some proper views then? Of course, as anyone who has read my Trip Reports before would know, I never fly Aer Lingus in the morning without having the breakfast. This time I noted the potato portion had morphed into something new. Quite fine though! We arrived on time. After waiting for all the Heathrow passengers to disembark, it was down the back stairs and over to the bus. Not without a photo though! … and what’s this? Anyway, we arrived at Flight Connections central, and onto another bus to Terminal 5. Through Passport control (where the agent was surprised I had an Australian passport and a mostly Irish accent!) and through security again into Terminal 5 for my connecting flight to Washington.

Overall Thoughts

Apparently I had no overall thoughts at the time. It’s fun, writing this part in 2021 to see what has changed and what remains the same. The Gold Circle lounge is now just the Aer Lingus Lounge in Dublin. During the pandemic, Aer Lingus gutted the old lounge and are constructing a brand new one, which will be interesting to see.

Terminal 2 at Dublin Airport remains virtually identical in every respect. It isn’t even showing any wear and tear, which is a credit to those responsible for its upkeep. The Aer Lingus Irish Breakfast remains the same too, as is the cabin interior on the A320.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this brief trip down memory lane. Have you flown Aer Lingus before? What do you think of them? Thank you for reading and if you have any comments or questions, please leave them below.

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