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Air Canada

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Air Canada
IATA ICAO Call sign
AC ACA Air Canada
Founded1937
HubsToronto Pearson International Airport
Montreal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport
Vancouver International Airport
Calgary International Airport
Focus citiesHalifax International Airport
Frequent-flyer programAeroplan
AllianceStar Alliance
Fleet size332
Destinations240
Parent companyACE Aviation Holdings Inc.
HeadquartersMontreal, Quebec
Key peopleRobert Milton (Chairman)
Montie Brewer (President & CEO)
Websitehttp://www.aircanada.com

Air Canada is Canada's largest airline and flag carrier. The airline, founded in 1937, has its corporate headquarters in Montreal, Quebec. The airline provides scheduled and charter air transportation for passengers and cargo to over 240 destinations and vacation packages to over 90 destinations via Air Canada Vacations. Air Canada is the world's 12th largest airline by fleet size and its largest hub is Toronto Pearson International Airport. Air Canada's parent company is ACE Aviation Holdings. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, the largest airline alliance in the world. It was formed in 1997 and now has 18 member airlines. On January 19, 2007, the airline was voted Best Airline in North America.[1] In 2006, roughly 32 million people flew with Air Canada.

In 2007, Air Canada celebrates its 70th anniversary as an airline.

History

Trans-Canada Airlines

L-10A Electra "CF-TCC" in Trans-Canada Air Lines livery at the Western Canada Aviation Museum.

Trans-Canada Airlines (TCA) was created as a subsidiary of Canadian National Railway (CNR) on April 10, 1937. Passenger operations began on September 1, with a Lockheed 10A carrying two passengers and mail from Vancouver to Seattle. The company was headquartered in Winnipeg which was also the site of the national maintenance base. In 1949, federal policy dictated the headquarters move to Montréal. Later the maintenance base also moved east which was a significant blow to western Canada. In the 1950s Air Canada did pioneering work in the use of computer reservation systems with the development of the ReserVec system. By 1964, TCA had grown to become Canada's national airline and in 1964 Jean Chrétien submitted a private member's bill to change the name of the airline from Trans-Canada Airlines to Air Canada. This bill failed but it was resubmitted and passed, with the name change taking effect on January 1, 1965. In a late 1970s reorganization at CNR, Air Canada became an independent Crown corporation.

Air Canada in the '80s and '90s

In 1987, Air Canada became the first airline in the world to have a fleet-wide non-smoking policy [1], and in 1989 became completely privatised. Air Canada sold the enRoute card business to Diners Club in 1992. Air Canada is a founding member of the Star Alliance, which was launched in May 1997. The airline continues to code-share with Star Alliance members.

On September 2, 1998 pilots for Air Canada launched the company's first pilots' strike. At the end of 1999 the Canadian government relaxed some of the aviation regulations, aimed at creating a consolidation of the Canadian airline industry.

2000 and beyond

In January 2000 Air Canada acquired Canada's second largest air carrier, Canadian Airlines, subsequently merging the latter's operations into its own. As a result Air Canada became the world's twelfth-largest commercial airline.

On April 1, 2003, Air Canada filed for bankruptcy protection, emerging from this protection on September 30, 2004, 19 months later. ACE Aviation Holdings is the new parent company under which the reorganised Air Canada is held. As of January 2005, Air Canada employed 29,198 staff.

Modernization

2004-present Air Canada livery on an Airbus A330-300
1994-2004 Air Canada livery on an Airbus A330-300
File:Ac747-433-1.jpg
1988-1996 Air Canada livery on a Boeing 747-400

In October 2004, the airline hired Celine Dion as part of the new promotional campaign as the airline unveiled new in-flight service products and new aircraft livery. "You And I" was written by an advertising executive working for Air Canada. The endorsement was not without controversy, however. At the time of the new branding, the airline had come out of bankruptcy protection just 18 months prior and thousands of workers were laid off in the restructuring. Union workers criticised that the airline could have spent money elsewhere to improve service and on employees. Management defended the celebrity endorsement and personal appearances as money well spent to boost corporate morale.

On October 31, 2004, the last Air Canada Boeing 747 flights landed in Toronto and in Montreal, ending more than 30 years of 747 service with the airline. The other planes were then shipped to Montréal to remove the paint. The remaining Boeing 747-400s which were previously in service have been superseded by the A340-500, which themselves are due for replacement. The A340-500 will be replaced by Boeing 777-200LR aircraft, which will be delivered beginning in 2007. These will be used primarily on extra-long haul routes such as Toronto to Hong Kong.

On November 9, 2005, Air Canada announced that it would renew its widebody fleet over several years by purchasing a mixture of Boeing 777 and 787 Dreamliner aircraft.[2] The order included a firm order for 32 airframes (18 777s and 14 787s) plus options for 64 more (18 777s and 46 787s), totalling 96 airframes. The first 777s are to begin arriving in April 2007 and the first 787s in 2010. Among the 777s to be delivered to Air Canada are freighter versions, making Air Canada one of the launch customers of the 777 Freighter along with Air France-KLM. All of Air Canada's 777 aircraft (both -200LR and -300ER) will be powered by the GE90-115B engine, the world's most powerful jet engine. Their 787 aircraft will be powered by the GEnx engine.[2] The order is a mixture of 777-200LRs and 777-300ERs, and 787-8s and 787-9s.

With the purchase of 777s, Air Canada will gradually phase out all A340s, including the older A340-300s and the new A340-500s. In addition, the Boeing 787 will gradually replace the Boeing 767 and A330-300. Air Canada has also begun to take delivery of Embraer 175 and 190 aircraft which will be used to expand their domestic and transborder routes. Older Airbus A319//A320 will be replaced with some of these new aircraft as delivery permits (Mostly Embraer 190). [3]

In November 2005 Air Canada stopped serving hot meals to all economy class seats for flights within Canada and the United States (except for certain Vancouver-Toronto flights inbound/outbound to Asia as well as Toronto-Los Angeles flights and other nonstop flights within North America longer than 5 hours). A selection of cold foods has been made available for purchase on those flights via the pay-as-you-go service "Onboard Cafe/Café en vol".

Air Canada has recently made several efforts to decrease fuel burn by reducing aircraft weight:

  • In November 2005, the paint and primer were removed from C-GDSP (a Boeing 767-233ER, tailfin no 613). However, the result was not considered aesthetically pleasing and the aircraft was repainted in late May/early June 2006. Also, the cost of the aluminum skin polishing and treatments to prevent corrosion (due to lack of paint and primer) outweighed the weight and fuel burn savings from removal of paint and primer.
  • In 2006, the airline began offering customers a modest rebate (termed the "GO Discount") in exchange for foregoing their checked baggage allowance.
Air Canada Boeing 767-300

Destinations

Air Canada operates flights to 240 destinations in Canada, The USA, Latin America, Europe, Australia and Asia.

Further information: Air Canada destinations

New routes

Effective April 01, 2007, using Bombardier 50 passenger CRJ equipment, Air Canada Jazz will introduce daily non-stop service between Halifax and New York City-La Guardia airport.[4]

Effective May 04, 2007, using Airbus A319 equipment, Air Canada will introduce daily non-stop service between Toronto and Deer Lake.[5]

Beginning June 01, 2007 until September 30, 2007, using Boeing 767-200ER equipment, Air Canada will introduce seasonal daily non-stop service between Montreal and Rome Fiumicino airport.[6]

Effective June 01, 2007, using Bombardier 50 passenger CRJ equipment, Air Canada Jazz will introduce daily non-stop services from Calgary to Prince George and Seattle, and effective June 15, 2007, from Vancouver to Sacramento. [7]

Beginning June 15, 2007 until September 16, 2007, using Airbus A319 equipment, Air Canada will introduce seasonal daily non-stop service between Edmonton and Halifax.[8]

Effective December 14, 2007, using Boeing 777 equipment, Air Canada will introduce daily non-stop service between Vancouver and Sydney, Australia, replacing the current one-stop routing via Honolulu. [9]

Passenger fleet

Air Canada will be the first North American operator of the Boeing 777-200LR and Boeing 777-300ER. The fleet consists of the following aircraft, as of March 2007: [10]

Air Canada Fleet
Aircraft Total Passengers
(Executive*/Economy) 		Routes Notes
Airbus A319 45 120 (14/106) Short-medium haul New interiors to be installed December 2006-April 2007
Airbus A320 45 140 (20/120) Short-medium haul New interiors to be installed October 2006-April 2007
Airbus A321 10 166 (24/142) Short-medium haul New interiors to be installed April 2007-July 2007
Airbus A330-300 8 274 (42/232) Medium-long haul New interiors to be installed February 2007 May 2007
Replacement aircraft: Boeing 787
Airbus A340-300 10 286 (30/256) Long haul
Airbus A340-500 2 267 (42/225) Toronto-Hong Kong AVOD at all seats [11]
Replacement aircraft: Boeing 777-200LR
Boeing 767-200/200ER 11 207 (24/183) Medium-long haul
Some Canada and United States 		New interiors to be installed in 2007
Replacement aircraft: Boeing 787
Boeing 767-300ER 32 203 (30/173)
212 (25/187)
212 (30/182)
213 (25/188) 		Medium-long haul

Montreal-Toronto

New interiors to be installed May 2006-July 2007
Replacement aircraft: Boeing 787
Boeing 777-200LR (6 orders) 270 (42/228) Entry into service: June 2007 - AVOD at all seats [12]
Replaces: Airbus A340-500
Boeing 777-300ER 1
(10 orders) 		349 (42/307) Entry into service: April 2007 - AVOD at all seats [13]
Replaces: Boeing 747-400
Boeing 777F (2 orders) Cargo Entry into service: 2009
Launch customer
Boeing 787-8 (14 orders) Entry into service: 2010
Replaces:
Boeing 767 Family and Airbus A330 Family
Embraer 175 15 73 (9/64) Canada and United States AVOD at all seats [14]
Embraer 190 20
(25 orders) 		93 (9/84) Canada and United States AVOD at all seats [15]

*Executive class is offered on most flights. Select international aircraft feature Executive First Suites.

(AVOD) audio-video on demand

Air Canada has options for 18 more Boeing 777s, 46 Boeing 787 Dreamliners and 60 Embraer E190s.

In February 2007, Air Canada's fleet was on average 9.7 years old.[3]


Jazz fleet

Air Canada's Subsidiary, Air Canada Jazz has a separate fleet consisting of 133 of the following aircraft as of October 2006:

Main article: Air Canada Jazz

Air Canada Jazz Fleet
Aircraft Number Passengers
(Executive*/Economy) 		Notes
Bombardier CRJ 100ER 23 50
Bombardier CRJ 200ER 35 50
Bombardier CRJ 705 15 75 (10/65) AVOD at all seats
Bombardier Dash 8 100/200 34 (originally 54) 37 Twin-Turboprop
Bombardier Dash 8 300 26 A:48
B:50 		Twin-Turboprop

*Executive Class is only available on Bombardier CRJ 705 aircraft
(AVOD) audio-video on demand

Historic fleet

List of aircraft that Air Canada has operated from 1937 to today (click on link for a photo):

File:Air Canada 747-400.jpg
The last three of Air Canada's Boeing 747s were retired by 2004.
File:Ac727.jpg
Air Canada's Boeing 727s were retired in 1992.
Type Used Picture
Avro Lancastrian 1943-1947 [16]
BAe 146-200 1990-2005 [17]
Boeing 727-200 1974-1992 [18]
Boeing 737-200 1976-2004 [19]
Boeing 747-100 1971-1998 [20]
Boeing 747-200M (Combi) 1975-1999 [21][22]
Boeing 747-400 1990-2003 [23][24]
Boeing 747-400M (Combi) 1990-2004 [25][26]
Bombardier CRJ 100ER 1994-2006 now with AC Jazz
Bristol 31 1953-1955 [27]
Canadair North Star 1946-1961 [28]
Douglas DC-3 1945-1963 [29]
Douglas DC-8-40 -50 -60 -70 1960-1983 [30]
Douglas DC-9-30 1966-2002 [31]
Douglas DC-10 From Canadian Airlines 1971-2001 [32]
Fokker F28 1986-2004 [33]
Lockheed Super Constellation 1954-1963 [34]
Lockheed L-1011 -1 -15 -100 -500 1973-1996 [35]
Lockheed Model 10 Electra 1937-1941 [36]
Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra 1941-1949 [37]
Lockheed Model 18 Lodestar 1941-1949 [38]
Stearman 1937-1939 [39]
Vickers Vanguard 1961-1972 [40]
Vickers Viscount 1955-1974 [41]

Maple Leaf Lounge

Onboard

Air Canada offers between two and three classes on the majority of their services. Most domestic services offer Executive Class and Economy, with international aircraft either offering (Executive First and Economy), (Executive First, Premium Economy and Economy) or (Premium Economy and Economy). Air Canada Jazz offers single class service (Economy) on the majority of its flights, while Executive Class and Economy is offered on some regional routes using the CRJ-705 aircraft.

Executive First (International Premium Business / First Class)

Executive First is Air Canada’s international premium business class product. Executive First features on all international aircraft except the B767-200 which is sometimes used on low-density European routes.

On the A330-300, A340-300 and the majority of B767-300 aircraft, seats are currently electronic lie flat reclining to 151 degrees, with a width of 21” and a pitch of 57-60”. On the A340-500, seats are currently electronic flat beds reclining to 180 degrees, with a width of 21" and a pitch of 63". Seat configuration on the Airbuses is 2-2-2, while the Boeings have a configuration of 1-2-2 or 2-2-1, depending on the tail fin number of the aircraft. Entertainment is personal AVOD (Audio Video On Demand) on A330-300, A340-500 and some A340-300 aircraft, while other A340-300s and some B767-300s have personal entertainment (not AVOD). Other B767-300 aircraft have personal DVD players.

On a select number of B767-300 aircraft, Air Canada have introduced their new cabin, offering electronic flat beds, in a 1-1-1 "herringbone" configuration with a 21" width and 75" pitch. Personal AVOD entertainment is included in the seat, which is similar in layout to Virgin Atlantic's Upper Class and Air New Zealand's Business Premier Class products. Eventually (see aircraft table), all international aircraft (B767-300, A330-300, B777-300, B777-200) will have this new interior except the A340s, which will be replaced sooner than other aircraft with new aircraft. Project XM (as it is termed by Air Canada), is expected to be completed by mid-2007. Music will be provided by XM satellite radio as of March 1, 2007 (in all classes on aircraft with both AVOD and the older IFE systems).

Executive Class (North American First Class)

Executive Class is Air Canada’s North American first class product.

Seat configuration varies between 1-2, 2-2 and 2-2-2 depending on the aircraft. Recline is around 120-130 degrees, with a width of 18-21” and a pitch of 37-39”.

Entertainment is currently main cabin video (not personal), although Project XM has started and a select number of A320 aircraft and all Embraer aircraft now have personal AVOD. Project XM (as it is termed by Air Canada), is expected to be completed by mid-2007. Music will be provided by XM satellite radio as of March 1, 2007 (in all classes on aircraft with both AVOD and the older IFE systems).

Premium Economy Class

Premium Economy is offered on international B767-200 aircraft and some B767-300s on routes mostly to Europe. The cabin is similar to the North American Executive Class cabin. Seats are pitched at 38-44” with a recline of 18” in a 2-2-2 configuration. Main screen entertainment is currently offered. The main cabin entertainment is presented on overhead ceiling monitors and on the bulkeads at the front of the cabins. Recorded CBC news and Hollywood movies are shown. A new cabin interior and personal AVOD entertainment (Project XM) is expected to be completed by mid-2007. Some aircraft will be replaced with new models. Music will be provided by XM satellite radio as of March 1, 2007 (in all classes on aircraft with both AVOD and the older IFE systems).

Air Canada Airbus A340-300 landing

Economy Class

Economy Class (previously named Hospitality Class) features on all aircraft. Seats are pitched 31-34” with a width of 17-18.5"” and a recline to around 6". Main screen entertainment is offered on all but the A340-500 and some B767 international aircraft and the Embraer 175/190 fleet as well as some A319 and A320 aircraft (where personal AVOD is included). The main cabin entertainment is presented on overhead ceiling monitors and on the bulkheads at the front of the cabins. Recorded CBC news and Hollywood movies are shown. A new cabin interior and personal AVOD entertainment on all aircraft (Project XM) is expected to be completed by mid-2007. Some aircraft will be replaced with new models. Music will be provided by XM satellite radio as of March 1, 2007 (in all classes on aircraft with both AVOD and the older IFE systems).

Boarding passes

The letter on a boarding pass corresponds to the named classes shown on the website, a rough breakdown as listed on the 2007 Aeroplan upgrade certificates follows: Tango (R, I, N, G, P, E, T), Tango Plus (B, H, V, Q, L, A), Latitude (M, U), Latitude Plus (Y) and Executive (J, C).

In-flight food

Air Canada offers a variety of meals on intercontinental routes, depending on seat class, destination and flight length. They do not offer food on most Canadian and US flights, but do offer hot meals and snacks on flights longer than five hours. A selection of cold food has been made for purchase on-board, paid in either US or Canadian dollars. Beverages like coffee, tea, juices and soft drinks are still free on domestic/US flights, but passengers are required to pay for alcohol.

Maintenance

Air Canada uses and provides maintenance services through Air Canada Technical Services (ACTS).

Ground handling

Air Canada uses and provides ground handling through Air Canada Ground Handling Services (ACGHS) and Cara Operations. At airports outside Canada, Air Canada uses local ground handling services.

Entertainment

Movies and music are available on all flights, but the duration varies depending on distance flown. Disposable head sets are provided free to all passengers and can be kept for future flights. Television news broadcast, Enroute Journal, are produced by CBC and RDI. The programs broadcasts short news, sports, weather and business summaries. Additional programming are provided by CNN International and Dave Chalk Connected. [42]

Newspapers and Magazines

Newspapers, magazines are available to business/first class passengers on Air Canada flights. Air Canada's in-flight magazine, enRoute, is provided to all passengers on all flights.

Subsidiaries and partners

Aeroplan

Air Canada Cargo

Main Article: Air Canada Cargo

  • Air Canada Cargo Limited Partnership offers cargo services on domestic and transborder flights, utilizing the cargo capacity on aircraft operated by Air Canada and Jazz on domestic and transborder routes. Air Canada offers cargo services on its international passenger flights and also uses chartered, all-freighter aircraft for Canada - Europe and Canada - Asia services. (Subsidiary of Air Canada)

Air Canada Ground Handling Services

  • ACGHS provides passenger handling services to Air Canada, Jazz and a number of other carriers with a primary focus on Canadian stations. Services covered include "above and below the wing" passenger and baggage handling services and ancillary services such as de-icing, ground support and equipment maintenance. (Subsidiary of Air Canada)

Air Canada Jazz (Jazz Air LP)

File:Jazz logo.gif

In 2001, Air Canada consolidated Air BC, Air Nova, Air Ontario and Canadian Regional Airlines into Air Canada Jazz. ACE Aviation Holdings is a major shareholder. In early February 2006, a portion of Jazz Air LP was spun off by ACE Aviation Holdings as an Income trust on the Toronto Stock Exchange. (Subsidiary of ACE Aviation)

Air Canada Jetz

File:Logo acjetz.gif
  • Launched in 2002, Air Canada Jetz is a charter service for sports teams and professionals. Air Canada Jetz uses A320 aircraft in an all business class configuration.



Air Canada Technical Services

  • ACTS is a full-service Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) organization that provides airframe, engine and component maintenance and various ancillary services to more than 100 customers. Major bases are in Montréal, Toronto, Winnipeg and Vancouver. (Subsidiary of ACE Aviation)

Air Canada Vacations

  • Air Canada Vacations offers a wide selection of sun, cruise and leisure vacation packages to the most popular destinations in the Caribbean, Florida, Hawaii, Mexico, Las Vegas, Central and South America, and Asia. (Subsidiary of ACE Aviation)

Partners

Code sharing

Air Canada codeshares with several airlines such as United, Lufthansa, Swiss International Air Lines, Air New Zealand, Austrian Airlines as well as other members of the Star Alliance.

Former subsidiaries

File:ACATango.jpg
File:Air Canada Zip Airlines Logo.gif
  • In 2001, Air Canada launched Air Canada Tango, which offered no-frills service and lower fares between major cities such as Toronto, Vancouver, Montréal and also to some holiday destinations such as Fort Lauderdale. Tango aircraft were painted with the Air Canada design but in purple. It is thought that Tango was intended to be Air Canada's vehicle for competing against the low cost carriers Canada 3000 and WestJet. The Tango service was dissolved in 2004. Air Canada now calls their lowest fare class "Tango" (Tango and Tango Plus), paying homage to the low-cost experiment.
  • In 2002, Air Canada launched Zip, a discount airline to compete directly with WestJet on routes in Western Canada. Zip operated as a separate airline with its own staff and brightly painted aircraft. It also was disbanded in 2004.

Other information

  • Air Canada was one of the first airlines to have its entire fleet of unpressurised aircraft equipped with fixed oxygen systems for use by flight crew and passengers, using the rebreathing bag principle.
  • Air Canada was the first airline to operate a jet freighter with the introduction of the DC-8.
  • Air Canada became the first major airline with an all turbine fleet which allowed an increase in productivity and reduction in maintenance costs.
  • Air Canada became the first airline in the world to introduce a system-wide Non-Smoking policy.
  • Air Canada in 1953 became the first airline to operate a Computer reservations system with remote terminals called ReserVec.
  • Air Canada was the first airline in Canada to operate the Airbus A320, and the first North American carrier to operate the A319, the first of which was introduced on the Toronto-Boston route.
  • Air Canada became the first airline in the world to offer all its customers telephones at arm's reach on all of its aircraft.
  • The Electronic ticket made its debut in Canada when Air Canada began testing the service on selected Canadian routes. It was phased in across Canada and on transborder routes during 1996.
  • Air Canada became the first major airline in Canada to offer E-mail sell-offs with AC WEBSAVER.
  • Air Canada became the first commercial airline to enable passengers to send and receive e-mail on their laptops while in flight, as well as surf websites.
  • Air Canada was the first, and continues to be the only North American operator of the A340-300 and A340-500.
  • In 1997, Air Canada repainted an Airbus A319 in the Trans-Canada retro livery.
  • Air Canada is the official carrier of the Toronto Raptors basketball team. One of its Airbus A320s was repainted to honour the team with the raptor dinosaur logo on an all-black fuselage, earning it the nickname "Dino-bus".
  • Air Canada unveiled a new aircraft colour scheme, and blue uniforms, on 19 October 2004. A Boeing 767-300 was painted in a silvery colour with a blue tint. The green tail has been replaced with the same silvery paint, but retains a version of the red maple leaf.
  • Air Canada was the winner of Best North American Airline in the 2005 World Airline Awards
  • Air Canada is the creator of the Dreams Take Flight program which flies children with special needs to Disneyland for a day.
  • On September 18, 2006, Air Canada and ITA Software finalised the contract in which ITA will build a new reservations management system for the carrier, replacing the antiquated RES III system from IBM. [44] (pdf)

Accidents

Incidents

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Air Canada.


References

  1. ^ http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/070119/mo174.html?.v=1
  2. ^ "Aircraft General Terms Agreement between The Boeing Company and Air Canada", SEDAR (Note: 18MB PDF document)
  3. ^ http://www.airfleets.net/ageflotte/?file=calcop&opp=Air%20Canada


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