[PatJordan]

Aer Lingus BHX –DUB (AER SPACE)
Aer Space is Aer Lingus’ new premium short haul travel product. It is available on short haul flights with the exception of those operated by Aer Lingus Regional: the ATR aircraft does not support the product. Aer Space earns the maximum tier points in the airlines loyalty programme: 50 tier points per segment, which could be useful for Tier progression.
The following features are promised:

• Middle seat free
• Private overhead storage
• Complimentary food and drink from Bia menu
• Lounge access
• Priority boarding
• Fast Track security
• Automatic standby for earlier flights
• Free changes and refunds

I used the Aer Lingus app on my smartphone to make the booking, and very easy process. Seat selection is available at time of booking, and the middle found it a front rows are marked as being unavailable. I chose 1A, one of my favourite seats. On-line check in is available up to 30 days pre-flight, and I took advantage of this to generate my boarding pass, both on my smartphone and a paper copy: always worthwhile as a back up!
I arrived at Birmingham International Airport at 12.30pm for my 3.10pm flight.
Fast track security.
In the past, my Aer Club Silver Tier sometimes granted me access to Fast Track Security in BHX. I was curious to see whether it and/or the Aer Space ticket would allow me access on this occasion. A quick scan of my boarding pass (on my smartphone) and the machine gave me a green sign and the gates opened. The security process was very efficient and I was airside within a few minutes.

Lounge
Aer Club offer access to No 1 Traveller Lounge in BHX. I have always found this to be a very pleasant lounge. There is the option to upgrade to the recently opened Clubroom Lounge for an additional £10. Given the Clubroom’s proximity to the Aer Lingus departure gates, and the enhanced food & drink I consider it to be excellent value.
I was warmly welcomed into the Clubroom and offered food & drink menus.

I took a seat at a very nicely presented dining table with elegant cutlery and napery. I ordered soup and beef burger from the menu, with a glass of sparkling wine to wash it down.

The soup was beautifully presented in a large dish with a bread stick and was delicious. The burger was served in a brioche bun with potato wedges and a salad garnish. It too was very tasty.

After eating, I settled in to a comfortable armchair beside a (much needed!) charging point for my phone and spent the remainder of my time reading.
The lounge staff are incredibly friendly and at no time was my glass empty. In addition, there was a selection of snacks: chilli crackers, nuts and salted pretzels to nibble on.

BOARDING
I was welcomed at the boarding gate, and invited to proceed to the priority boarding area. Within a few minutes Aer Club and Aer Space guests were invited to board, and we proceeded down a flight of stairs to find the door leading to the aircraft locked. A friendly Swissport agent opened the door to allow some ventilation and said the aircraft would be ready in a few minutes, which it indeed was. The boarding process was swiftly completed using both front and rear doors.
Cabin crew warmly welcomed me on board the Airbus A320 which was immaculate as is the norm.
Aer Space seats are clearly marked with blue anti macassars. I was seated in 1A, with nobody in 1C thus giving lots of personal space. Only one other passenger occupied the row opposite.
I was reminded that as seated in an exit row, all belongings had to be stored in the overhead bin. The bins over row 1 were clearly marked as being for that row only, thereby protecting the integrity of the AerSpace product.
Following a safety briefing from the cabin crew and flight information from the flight deck, we were shortly underway.
CATERING

As promised, I was given the choice to select food and drink from the BIA menu. I chose a Beef & Guinness slice which I was curious to sample. It was quite pleasant with a beer to wash it down.
Arrival DUBLIN
We landed on time in Dublin, and after a short taxi were on stand.
This was my first experience of AER SPACE. Did the product live up to its expectations and deliver the promised benefits?

• Middle seat free
As promised the middle seat was free, giving plenty of space for those in window and aisle seats.
• Private overhead storage
The bins over Row 1 were clearly reserved for Row 1 passengers.

• Complimentary food and drink from Bia menu
Full selection of Bia Menu on offer

• Lounge access
No 1 Traveller Lounge available in BHX, with the option to upgrade to Clubrooms.

• Priority boarding
This was in place
• Fast Track security
This was available
• Automatic standby for earlier flights
Didn’t apply in this instance.
• Free changes and refunds
Not applicable in this instance.

Conclusions

I was very impressed with my experience of Aer Space. Each of the constituents of the package was delivered and I found the short flight very pleasant indeed.

Aer Space, in my opinion, is a winner.

5 users thanked author for this post.

alanred13, DerekVH, FrDougal, fqtvgla, Jenni Reid

[MartynSinclair]

Hi Pat

I know every airline has its own unique offering. Air Lingus is not BA… HOWEVER, I do like the following 2 benefits:

Automatic standby for earlier flights
Free changes and refunds

The number of times I have turned up for a return flight early, because my meeting(s) finished early. Always hit and miss with BA, down to the gate agent.

Out of interest, what is the price difference for these benefits?

[PatJordan]

Hi Martyn,

I paid 149euro for my ticket. That was for a booking made about 2 months in advance.

There is quite a variance on Aer Space fares, I have seen some Dublin- Heathrow fares closer to 400euro. I imagine demand and the time factor would drive the fares upwards.

As far as I know, some of the lower priced fares include standby for earlier flights: the Plus and Advantage fares.

Hope this helps, Martyn.

[SwissExPat]

Thanks Pat

It is interesting in how EI have almost completely unbundled every element of the service which can be bought separately.

Now it seems that they are combining elements into bundles and then selling these. All good for choice.

I had a look at some random dates in October for ZRH-DUB one way.

It seems that the AER SPACE fare varied between CHF 230 and an eye watering CHF 630. IN both cases, the BASIC fare was CHF 70.

I suppose the last element of the AER SPACE service that could be (re)intriduced would be the instalation of a “Curtain” !!!!

[Author]

Posts