There are many things to recommend Aer Lingus to the world-weary traveller. Its jolly, smiling staff and its newly remodelled business-class compartment are but two of them, but there is something still greater about it. Travellers flying from Europe to New York can make a pit-stop in Dublin or Shannon and do all the US immigration checks there, which means you can land at JFK and walk straight out to your car, which, as regular travellers will know, is something of a deliverance. We climbed aboard.

Flying out of Heathrow’s terminal 2 is a bit like winning the Heathrow lottery. It is new and shiny and has the odd nice restaurant, which you might have to call on, because the Aer Lingus lounge, although very comfortable with showers and a fully stocked bar of Guinness, red and white wine and soft drinks, is not long on food – mostly just small snacks, cheese and crackers and the like. And because you don’t have access to the full terminal at Dublin, the situation there is much the same.

Aer Lingus recently reconfigured its business-class cabin in a very agreeable way. Most airlines go for a 2-2 configuration or a 2-4-2 on bigger planes, which is great if you’re flying as a couple or a group, but not so good if you are on your own. Aer Lingus takes a civilised approach with a 1-2-1 set-up on its Airbus A330, so the singletons get the best seats in the house, which is only fair.

The new business-class seats have a pitch of 58in, are 21in wide and, when laid out, the bed reaches to an unusually comfortable 6ft 6in, so you can actually stretch out to your utmost, unless you really are a giant. On top of that, there are two things that mark the seat out. First, it has a massage setting, and second, it has more storage than any other plane we have travelled on, including boxes for shoes, a “library” area and even a drawer for the contents of your pockets.

Aer Lingus is that rare beast: a carrier with Wi-Fi. And free Wi-Fi at that for business-class flyers. It is speedy, too. There is a decent size screen but not the most comprehensive choice of films or TV programmes. There are some classic films and some specifically Irish TV programmes, but not a great deal else. But the flight is short and what there is is perfectly adequate.