Universities spend almost €850k on business class airfares
Included The At A Of From University To Boston €7,908 Spend Flights Cost Of Lingus Galway Shannon Aer
Seven universities have spent almost €850,000 on business class airfares, travel records released to the via Freedom of Information requests show.
University College Dublin (UCD) had the highest spend of the seven universities at almost €444,000. This is approximately two-thirds of the €653,155 spent by the university since January 2021 on premium or non-economy flights.
In a statement attached to the documents, UCD said it is worth noting it generally only approved business class flights for staff traveling long distances on university business.
This includes recruiting international students. “While UCD has the largest cohort of Irish students in Ireland, it also teaches over 7,000 international students in Ireland and over 4,500 students in overseas operations. The total amount spent on business travel seems large when taken in isolation of other facts but when taken alongside the scale of our operation, it does give us excellent financial value.”
It said the contracted service providers for flights via a travel agency "were appointed following an extensive tender process conducted by the Office of Government Procurement".
Air travel records show that Trinity College Dublin (TCD) booked its staff on 57 business or first-class flights since late 2021, totaling almost €166,325.
Included among these trips was €4,376.88 spent on business class flights in February 2023 from Dublin to Brisbane via Dubai for a medical research conference, as well as €6,608.04 for business class flights in May 2023 from Dublin to the Melbourne software engineering conference.
The university also spent €5,139 for business class flights from Dublin to Singapore via Frankfurt in January 2023 for teaching on the Singapore Institute of Technology/TCD Joint Degree Programme.
University of Galway spent more than €83,245 on 30 business class trips between 2021 and 2023. Fares included an Aer Lingus flight from St Louis to Ireland, at a cost of €5,838; an Emirates flight from Dublin to Sydney, at a cost of €7,666 and Aer Lingus flights from Boston to Shannon at a cost of €7,908.
The university also spent €11,275.53 on three return business flights with Turkish airlines from Dublin to Kuala Lumpur International Airport via Istanbul.
A spokesman for University of Galway said it has a clear policy on air travel, including business class expenses.
“Any proposed travel of this nature requires prior approval at a senior level and is only considered for flights longer than six hours and when the expense is clearly an allowable cost by the funding source. University of Galway also has a contracted travel management service which staff are advised to use to achieve value for money.”
The University of Limerick spent €52,214.27 on 24 business class flights in 2022 and 2023.
These fares included an Aer Lingus flight from Dublin to Canada costing €5,301; a Qatar flight from Dublin to India costing €4,841 and flights with Turkish Airlines from Dublin to Hong Kong at a cost of €3,039.
A UL spokesman said flights under eight hours will not require business or equivalent class travel, as a general rule. In limited situations where it may be necessary, it must be approved in advance in writing by the Office of the UL president.
“Staff are encouraged to consider alternatives to travel, such as video conferencing, Teams and other available media, where appropriate. The university also aims to reduce carbon emissions from travel by encouraging staff to adopt a climate-conscious approach to travel.”
University College Cork (UCC) spent €49,919 on business class travel. However, €13,549 of the costs recorded were charged to research projects and came within the terms of the external research agency funding for the associated projects.
Business class flights covered by the university included €5,013 for Emirates flights to Kuala Lumpur for a strategic partner visit, as well as €1,698 to Bangalore, and €2,769 for flights to Chenai, both for international recruitment fairs.
A spokesman for UCC said that the university has a staff policy for travel which states all official travel should be by the shortest practicable route and by the cheapest practicable mode of conveyance where possible.
“All air travel is individually assessed and must be pre-approved, including applications for business travel, on a case-by-case basis.”
Maynooth University spent €39,629.86 on business class flights, the FOI records show. Included in this were flights to Cape Town, at €1,990.40; €8,292.83 on flights to China for academic teaching; and €5,087.88 to Doha, Qatar, for an academic conference.
The university’s travel policy sets out that business class or premium economy air travel can be permitted in specific circumstances. This includes when a flight exceeds five hours when the additional costs of business travel can be met from the existing budget, and when prior approval has been obtained.
Dublin City University spent €24,301.23 on 11 business class flights, the FOI records show. Included in this were three fares to Edmonton, Canada, each costing €3,639.28 for university business meetings.
A DCU spokesman said its travel policy states that air travel should be planned so as to reduce the total amount of traveling to the minimum, consistent with efficiency of time and sustainability.
“Sustainability is a key focus of the university’s strategy. Before deciding to travel, university employees should consider whether the same business outcomes could be achieved in a more environmentally friendly way.”