Dealing with whoever signs off your air travel expenses these days can be a right pain.

Airfares are going through the roof and there’s a general clampdown on costs during these testing times. Typical response: ‘Do you have to fly there? Can’t you Zoom them instead?’

Real Life is here to tell you that sometimes Zoom won’t cut the mustard and you have to see someone face-to-face if you are going to do business.

But your travel booker is right – airlines are trying to grab as much money as they can post-pandemic and business travellers like you are fair game.

They know you want to get home for the weekend which is why transatlantic fares can be as much as 60% cheaper if you stay a Saturday night.

Want to fly in the comfortable end of the bus to New York? That’ll cost you around £6,740 on British Airways and around the same in Virgin Atlantic’s somewhat superior ‘upper class’ product.

Your travel booker will likely tell you to fly premium economy and be grateful. And at around £1,700, you’d probably agree that a better meal and a lie-flat seat ain’t worth that extra £5k.

But in your heart of hearts, you’d still quite like the comfort and attention you get in Business. First-world problems, sure, but it’s a perk you’d quite like to cling onto.

GARP: go at a reasonable price

Here’s how you can do that, earn brownie points from the expenses folk – and save a potential lengthy hassle landing in the Big Apple.

Fly Aer Lingus, the Irish national airline.

Not only will you get to New York in business class for around £1,900 – a tad, but not much, more than premium economy elsewhere – but you’ll also get to clear US immigration in Dublin between connecting flights.

That means you’ll land in a domestic terminal at JFK or Newark and – provided you have hand luggage only, as you should be these days – you’ll be speeding towards Manhattan (and that first Manhattan…) within minutes.

I’ve done this several times and it works like clockwork.

Fly to Dublin from a London airport and follow the signs to the US immigration area. There might seem to be a long line ahead of you but, flying business, you’re going to be in a priority queue.

I’ll take Manhattan

Even the immigration formalities seem easier in Dublin. The US border staff get posted there for months-long stints. It’s a decent perk and most of them seem to be in a better frame of mind than their colleagues back home.

And who can blame them? The last plane leaves for the US at 4pm, so they can be quickly off to enjoy the delights of that fair city rather than grinding home through the mean streets of Queens after a late shift on their own turf.

Once through, there’s a more-than-decent lounge to enjoy, called 51st and Green – every US politician who’s ever drunk a Guinness chummily refers to Ireland as the 51st state.

That plane is an Airbus in either single or double aisle variety. Whichever variety it is, everything from the food to the seats and service is every bit as good – and quite often much better – than British Airways.

The business class crew have a maximum of 30 passengers on board, so you’ll get plenty of attention. Oh yes, and free Wi-Fi all the way, which can be really useful.

Downsides? Four flight legs instead of two obviously take longer and increases the risks of missing a connection. So a top tip is to take an early flight out of London and build in solid connection space in Dublin.

But on the other hand, flying to New York takes up most of a day anyway so you’re not going to gain that much by flying direct – and just think of the hours not spent in the immigration queue on arrival.

Checking out

• For a full review of flying Aer Lingus business, go to Real Life’s travel nerd site of choice: Head for Points
• Aer Lingus flies to nine other US cities and Toronto from Dublin
• It can also connect you from 12 other UK airports and many others across Europe
• Added bonus – you’ll earn Avios and British Airways tier points for each leg

All flight price comparisons from Kayak on 13 December for a return journey from 6-10 March.