Aer Arann Express, the regional Irish airline, is in discussions with Belfast City Airport concerning the development of a new commuter service between Belfast City Airport and Dublin.
The airline confirmed it is currently in discussions with the airport which is engaged in a major campaign to attract new operators to locate in the North.
A new £22-million sterling (#35.6 million) airport will open in Belfast at the end of this month and will be primarily aimed at the business market.
The airport specialises in providing daily direct routes from Belfast to major cities in Britain, such as Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and London (via Stansted Airport).
Aer Arann Express currently operates a daily service between Dublin and Derry but according to industry sources there is good potential to develop a daily Dublin-Belfast service. There is currently no air service between the two cities.
Mr Nigel Smyth, director of the Confederation of British Industry, one of the North's largest business bodies, said any additional links between the North and the Republic would be welcomed by the business community.
"Northern Ireland is very well served by services to Great Britain but we would welcome new routes to the Republic of Ireland and mainland Europe," he said.
"There has been a significant increase in the amount of cross Border trade and there are tremendous growth opportunities for Northern Ireland companies in the Republic still," Mr Smyth said.
The airline, which has operated routes from the Aran Islands for more than 30 years, has been developing a network of regional routes from its hub at Dublin Airport to regional destinations in Ireland and to Sheffield in Britain.
