This summer, the Irish capital, Dublin, is set to have a new longest route, as China Eastern Airlines has scheduled a nonstop service from Shanghai to Dublin Airport (DUB). The commencement of this service will beat the airport’s current longest service to Los Angeles, operated by the Irish carrier Aer Lingus.

The addition of this new route will bring China Eastern’s European network to 14 destinations across 12 countries, while further increasing connectivity between Europe and far-east Asia, especially within the SkyTeam alliance.

China Eastern Flies To Dublin This Summer

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China Eastern is set to launch nonstop services from Shanghai Pudong International Airport (PVG) to Dublin this summer, which will then become the longest flight service offered by the Irish capital city. According to Aeroroutes, the airline will commence service on July 20, on a thrice-weekly frequency, and is scheduled to use its Airbus A350-900 aircraft on this route.

Because China Eastern can continue using Russian airspace, the carrier can operate a flight path relatively close to the great-circle route between PVG and DUB, which measures approximately 5,819 nautical miles (10,777 km). The following is the itinerary the airline will be operating:

These services will be operated by the airline on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, with the westerly flight to Dublin being allocated a block time of 13 hours and 20 minutes, while the return service to Shanghai has been allocated a block time of 12 hours and five minutes.

According to a press release by Ireland’s Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, this new route was made possible by Ireland’s establishment of an Air Service Agreement with China. The Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment, Peter Burke, commented on the market’s growth.

“China is a significant growth market for Ireland, and we now have a direct Dublin to Shanghai flight for the first time.”

Dublin’s Existing Service To China

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The Irish capital is already connected to the Chinese Capital, Beijing, through the four weekly services operated by Hainan Airlines. That being said, it is worth noting that the airline is set to boost capacity by adding three more weekly flights to turn this into daily service between June 22 and September 9. The carrier operates these services with its fleet of Airbus A330-300 aircraft.

According to IDA Ireland, the airline launched this service to Beijing Capital Airport (PEK) back in 2018. However, initially, the airline operated two direct flights to Dublin, along with two flights to Ireland’s capital via Edinburgh, Scotland, which were operated under fifth-freedom traffic rights. However, this changed in 2019, and since then, all four current services to Dublin are operated directly, while the two services to Scotland terminate at Edinburgh and return to Shanghai.

The approximate great-circle distance from Beijing to Dublin is only 5,100 nautical miles (9,445 km), so it is not as far as the upcoming service to Shanghai, which will be operated by China Eastern.

Aer Lingus Also Bringing Long-Haul Connectivity To Dublin

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The new route to Shanghai is not a one-off, as Dublin is set to receive several new long-haul routes this year. Later this month, on May 25, Aer Lingus will be launching four weekly services to Pittsburgh, USA, which will be the carrier’s 24th destination in North America. The launch of service to Pittsburgh comes on the heels of Aer Lingus’ launch of three weekly flights to another US destination last month, Raleigh-Durham.

With the carrier launching two new long-haul destinations, it not only strengthens Aer Lingus’ transatlantic network but also strengthens connectivity for Dublin Airport. Furthermore, the airport has an advantage in Transatlantic connectivity due to its geographical location, and it is one of the few airports in the world to offer US Preclearance. This is a facility limited to certain airports where passengers flying to the US can clear immigration before they even board their flight, allowing them to arrive as domestic passengers in the US.

The airport also received another long-haul service earlier this year, when Aer Lingus launched three weekly services to Cancun, Mexico, in January. However, this route was seasonal and only operated until the end of April. According to the airline, this route was announced to mark the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries.