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Tens of thousands of passengers booked on transatlantic flights from Manchester airport have had their travel plans torn up after Aer Lingus confirmed the closure of its base. Around 200 staff will be affected, the majority of them cabin crew.

The final flights will return to the northwest England hub on the morning of 31 March – but the New York link will close before that.

The Irish airline’s statement reads: “A decision has been taken to cease Aer Lingus’ Manchester transatlantic operations as of and from 31 March 2026. Manchester-New York operations will cease from 23 February 2026.

“Aer Lingus plans to operate a service from Dublin to Barbados (subject to receipt of necessary approvals) during the months of April and May to reaccommodate affected customers.

“We understand that this is disappointing news and apologise for the disruption to our customers.

“All impacted customers are being informed of the cancellation of flights directly and provided with reaccommodation and refund options.”

Earlier in January Aer Lingus revealed it was consulting with staff on the possible closure of the Manchester operation, and said it was taking flights off sale to prevent more passengers booking.

Travellers whose flights are cancelled are entitled to be flown to their destination “via the same route”, according to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

The obvious alternative for routes to New York JFK and Orlando is Virgin Atlantic, which flies nonstop from Manchester to both US cities.

But the Dublin-based airline insists the only options for passengers are to accept re-routing with a change of plane at its hub at the Irish capital, or take a refund.

The indirect option to Orlando takes over three hours longer. Aer Lingus is currently selling such connecting flights for over £100 less than the nonstop trip from Manchester.

Aer Lingus told one passenger who sought a replacement nonstop flight: “Comparable transport conditions under UK Regulation 261 2004 relate to the overall provision of transport to the final destination and do not require an airline to replicate every aspect of the original journey structure or to provide an identical nonstop service on another carrier.”

The CAA said it could not comment on whether Aer Lingus is meeting its obligations.

Aer Lingus flights between Manchester and Ireland are unaffected.

Read more: Aer Lingus refuses to rebook disrupted passengers onto Virgin flights