For their 10th anniversary, one Triangle couple found an extra bit of luck to enrich their romance — a nonstop flight to Dublin.
Carmen Ludtke and Ben Snow got wind that Aer Lingus would soon start flying direct from Raleigh-Durham International Airport, and they jumped at the chance for convenient fun and celebration.
“It was very serendipitous,” said Ludtke, wearing an emerald-green top hat in Terminal 2. “It was like, ‘Why not?’ We’ve never been. It’s going to be super-exciting, so here we are.”
Triangle travelers now have a fifth option to fly nonstop to Europe.
Carmen Ludtke and Ben Snow head to Dublin on the first nonstop flight from RDU to the city in Ireland. It is the couple’s 10th anniversary. Josh Shaffer [email protected]
Aer Lingus begins flying between Raleigh-Durham International Airport and Dublin, Ireland, on Monday, April 13. The inaugural flight is scheduled to leave at 8:25 p.m. and arrive in Ireland at 8:45 a.m. Tuesday.
All around the terminal, travelers waited in green shirts and sweaters, dreaming of cold Guinness while an Irish duo played “A Long Way from Clare to Here”
Aer Lingus will fly the route five days a week: Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays. The flights will be year-round, though the airline may reduce the frequency in the winter, said Bill Byrne, the airline’s senior vice president for North America.
Dublin becomes the fifth European destination served from RDU, after Frankfurt, London, Paris and Reykjavik. More than 1,000 people fly from RDU to Europe each day, said airport president and CEO Michael Landguth, and until now Dublin was the most popular European destination without a nonstop flight.
“It greatly expands opportunities and connections,” said Tammie Hall-Roberts, board chair of the Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority. “Prior to this, you had to make a stop before Dublin, and we’re eliminating that. We’re excited.”
Investments, incentives for Aer Lingus RDU-Dublin flights
RDU offered incentives to persuade Aer Lingus to come to the Triangle that includes waiving certain fees and helping market the new flights.
The airport also hoped to put together a $1.8 million incentive package for the carrier. The business community has pledged $300,000, and RDU asked for and received $1.5 million from the General Assembly.
An airline takes a big risk when it starts trans-Atlantic service from an airport like RDU, Landguth said. Between the plane, crews and other costs, Aer Lingus will invest about $100 million in the RDU-Dublin flight, so the incentives help, he said.
Aer Lingus will use the Airbus A321XLR, a narrow-body plane that seats 184 people.
Air travel demand amid the war, COVID-19 pandemic
The Dublin flight debuts as demand for air travel has begun to soften. Soaring fuel prices caused by the war in the Middle East could hurt even more, as airlines hike fares to recoup costs and travelers reconsider their options.
Air travel through RDU grew steadily in the years before the arrival of COVID-19 in 2020, and then picked up again as the pandemic waned. A record 15.6 million passengers flew in and out of RDU in 2025.
But that growth is beginning to level off. Even before the war, airport forecasts predicted a 1% increase in passengers next year, said Ron Kapocius, the chief financial officer, but to be conservative the airport’s budget for the year beginning April 1 assumes a 2% decline.
This story was originally published April 13, 2026 at 11:47 AM.
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Richard Stradling
The News & Observer
Richard Stradling covers transportation for The News & Observer. Planes, trains and automobiles, plus ferries, bicycles, scooters and just plain walking. He’s been a reporter or editor for 38 years, including the last 26 at The N&O. 919-829-4739, [email protected].
