Since the inaugural flight from Collinstown Airport (now Dublin Airport) at 9:00 a.m. on January 19, 1940, when an Aer Lingus Lockheed-14 departed for Liverpool, Dublin Airport has seen a steady growth in passenger numbers. By 1947, flights from Dublin Airport went to continental Europe, and new concrete runways were completed in the late 1940s.
LEYLAND TIGERS
By 1950, Dublin Airport had served 920,000 passengers, and to accommodate the growing demand, in 1951CIÉ converted four Leyland Tiger P class coaches (P24 to P27). These four coaches were dual-purpose, 30-seat front-entrance coaches for a dedicated service between Dublin Airport and Dublin City Air Terminal on Cathal Brugha Street in the city centre.
AER LINGUS & CIÉ
Year on year passenger numbers flying into Dublin airport continued to increase and in 1952 Aer Lingus management approached their counterparts in CIÉ with a request to build and operate on their behalf a fleet of purpose-built double-deck coaches for use on the airport to Dublin city-center transfer service.
NEW DESIGN COACH
Renowned London-based industrial design consultant James Gardner was recruited to design a 50-seater R-class coach on a Leyland chassis, to meet Aer Lingus’s exact specifications. Gardner was a leading industrial designer of his era, later known for designing the exterior of the QE2 cruise ship and its iconic quarter-deck swimming pool.
Gardner’s innovative design included a fully enclosed front with no separate driver’s cab. The coach featured centre doors with power-operated mechanisms and spacious luggage compartments on the near side and rear, providing a total of 400 cubic feet of storage. Passengers were mainly seated on the upper deck and enjoyed high-backed seats reminiscent of aircraft seating, each fitted with scenic frames showcasing images of Ireland. The upper deck had a two-panel front window for a distinctive look.
CIÉ INCHICORE
The six double-deck R-class coaches (R541 – 546), with bodywork designated FCH34/ 16C were then built on Leyland Titan OPD2 chassis with 80 horsepower engines by CIÉ at the Spa Road Works, Inchicore.
NEW SERVICE LAUNCHED
The fleet of six coaches entered service in July 1953, operating initially from the Aer Lingus city terminal located on Cathal Brugha Street and then later from Busáras (Dublin central bus station) when it opened for passengers in October 1953.
On July 1, 1953, the Cork Examiner published a report about the new coach service; “That they are probably the most luxuriously appointed double decker coaches in the service anywhere and were specially designed for the carriage of passengers between the city and the airport.” The newspaper went on make the case for the new coaches as Aer Lingus was expanding its fleet with the imminent arrival of their 49-seat Viscount aircraft, larger coaches were needed to transfer up to 50 passengers and have 400 cubic feet of luggage to the city centre.
In the early 1950s, with minimal security and passport checks, the airport coach collected passengers directly from the plane, transporting them and their luggage straight to city centre. The city of the incoming flight was displayed on the front of each coach and within living memory many Dubliners will recall the emerald, green airport coaches driving down through the north Dublin suburbs showing the names of exotic cities such as Paris and Brussels.
Commissioned & specified by: Aer Lingus
Designer: James Gardner
Coachwork: CIÉ Workshops Spa Road Inchicore
Chassis: Leyland built Titan OPD2
Engine power: 80 hp
Luggage capacity: 400 cubic feet
Passengers: 50
Crew: 1
Comfort: high backed seats & under-seat heating
12 YEARS SERVICE
These distinctive coaches remained in service until February 1965, when they were modified with open rear platforms, redesignated as H37/31R, and integrated into the standard fleet operating from Donnybrook depot in South Dublin and we believe they were withdrawn around 1974 from Clontarf Garage.
LAST OF THE COACHES
One of these unique R-coaches No. R541 (registration: ZO 6960) is on display in the collection of the Cavan and Leitrim Railway, Dromod, Co. Leitrim. We believe that there is just one other of these iconic CIÉ-built coaches which is now in private hands and is to be restored in the near future.
If you have a story, please email Kevin Reid [email protected]
Sources of Information and Photo Credits:
Aer Lingus Archive
Airliners
Air Times – Collectors Guide to Airline Timetables
Cavan & Leitrim Railway
CIÉ Titans – A concise history of the Leyland Titan TDs and PDs in the Córas Iompair Éireann fleet from 1931 – 1977 (Book One) – Ed O’Neill
DAA plc
Dublin Then and Now
Ireland 2050
Old Dublin Town
Photo Credits – Gary Manahan, John Sinclair, Michael Corcoran Collection, Sirpa Kutilainen, Tommy Sanfrey, M Spingett, P Gates Collection
PL Chadwick
The Little Museum of Dublin
