Aer Lingus is believed to have a shortlist of five candidates to replace its chief executive, Mr Garry Cullen, who resigned in February. However, it is thought that a final decision is not imminent.

The State-owned airline, which is planning to float on the stock market later this year, said yesterday that the US authorities had granted it code-sharing rights with American Airlines on its four trans-Atlantic routes.

Aer Lingus has also been granted permission to start a regular service from Dublin to Baltimore-Washington International Airport. There will be three flights weekly from September and a daily service will commence next summer. It is believed these services could generate an additional 150,000 passengers each year, when fully operational.

The code-sharing deal means the reservation systems of both airlines will be linked and transfers booked by Aer Lingus passengers will function as direct flights. It is believed that this arrangement could also generate additional traffic of 150,000 people per year.

Excluding these developments, Aer Lingus is hoping to carry 1.4 million passengers on its trans-Atlantic routes this year.