A new airline route to Indianapolis will be launched today, with a connection to Southampton.

Aer Lingus is launching a new direct route from Dublin to Indianapolis.

The route, offering four flights per week, will also have connections to 10 UK airports, including Southampton.

This will provide a seamless transatlantic link to the US sports hub, home of the Indy 500.

The route is expected to be popular with UK travellers, with connections from Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds Bradford, Liverpool, London Heathrow, Manchester, Newcastle, and Southampton.

Aer Lingus chief executive officer, Lynne Embleton, said: "At Aer Lingus, our mission is to strengthen connectivity between North America and Europe.

"This new direct flight between Indianapolis and Dublin is a significant milestone for our airline, bringing the number of transatlantic routes we fly to a total of 24."

The route will also provide a valuable business link to Indianapolis, one of the top 30 US metro areas with a population exceeding 2 million.