Dublin is in line for direct flights to and from Shanghai, China’s largest city, State airports company, airport operator DAA, confirmed on Wednesday.
Reports recently have stated that China Eastern Airlines has highlighted the Republic’s capital as one of several new destinations to which the carrier had said it wanted to fly.
DAA confirmed that the airline had decided to connect Shanghai and Dublin, with details likely to emerge later this year.
“We know there is pent-up demand for connections between China and Ireland, with around 150,000 people travelling both directly and indirectly between the two countries last year,” said the company.
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“DAA is working with the airline to progress its plans for the launch of this new route later this year.”
Earlier, Minister for Tourism Peter Burke said that the China Eastern Airlines Shanghai to Dublin service “has been announced”.
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However, his department was unable to provide any details on when the flights would begin.
The Minister referred to the service alongside several other measures to boost tourism.
They included increased resources for State agency Tourism Ireland to boost marketing in Europe, which would allow year-round promotion in countries such as France and Germany.
Increased staff for the State agency in North America, allowing it to boost marketing in cities with direct flights to the Republic.
“I am also announcing that we will now have people in [the] market in both the United Arab Emirates and India, where previously we had no representation,” said Burke.
Meanwhile, air travel industry regulator the Irish Aviation Authority said Dublin Airport exceeded service quality targets on ease of movement, free wifi and services to passengers with reduced mobility.
However, the authority penalised the airport for failing to meet targets on cleanliness of toilets and information on ground transport.
DAA said that the regulator confirmed that passenger satisfaction continued to improve while numbers grew to historic highs.
