Air Canada expands winter service to Argentina, Brazil and Chile
New aircraft, new interiors offer superior comfort for southern hemisphere summer MONTREAL, March 19 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada is enhancing service to its major South American destinations next winter with the introduction of new non-stop service to Buenos Aires, an exclusive flight to Santiago and the introduction of a Boeing 777-300ER for Sao Paulo. "Air Canada is improving its services to Argentina, Brazil and Chile in response to continued strength in these markets during the busy southern hemisphere summer, including the demand for connections between South America and our global network through our Toronto hub to Europe and Asia. By establishing two separate, non-stop services for Argentina and Chile and deploying our largest, most modern aircraft for Brazil, customers will have faster travel times and better connection opportunities than previously," said Ben Smith, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer. "Moreover, all the aircraft serving these routes will feature lie-flat suites in Executive First and personal audio visual entertainment, a power plug and USB port at every seat to provide customers the most modern amenities in the sky today." Starting December 1, 2008 and ending April 1, 2009, Air Canada will split its current daily Toronto-Santiago-Buenos Aires flight into two separate flights, each operating five times a week between Toronto and the cities of Santiago and Buenos Aires. Also during the period Air Canada will begin flying a 349-seat Boeing 777-300ER daily between Toronto and Sao Paulo, which is currently served with a 211-seat Boeing 767-300ER. Air Canada flight AC94 will depart Toronto at 11:45 p.m. every Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday and arrive in Buenos Aires at 1:05 p.m. the following day. Flight AC95 will depart Buenos Aires at 9:05 p.m. each Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday and arrive in Toronto at 6:40 a.m. the following day. The route will be served with a refurbished Boeing 767-300ER. This new service will reduce travel times between Buenos Aires and Toronto and other points in Air Canada's network by up to 3 1/2 hours. Air Canada flight AC92 will depart Toronto at 11:55 p.m. every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday and arrive in Santiago at 12:30 p.m. the following day. Flight AC93 will depart Santiago at 9:25 p.m. each Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Sunday and arrive in Toronto at 6:40 a.m. the following day. The route will be served with a refurbished Boeing 767-300ER. Also starting December 1, 2008, Air Canada will upgauge the aircraft serving Toronto-Sao Paulo to a Boeing 777-300ER from a Boeing 767-300ER, providing an additional 138 seats a day. AC90 will depart Toronto daily at 10:10 p.m. and arrive in Sao Paulo at 10:50 a.m. AC91 will depart Sao Paulo at 10:30 p.m. and arrive in Toronto the following morning at 5:35 a.m. The flights are timed to connect with onward flights to Europe and Asia, providing convenient travel times between those continents and South America. The deployment of a Boeing 777 on the route will also enable Air Canada to expand cargo services between Canada and Brazil. About Air Canada ---------------- Montreal-based Air Canada provides scheduled and charter air transportation for passengers and cargo to more than 170 destinations on five continents. Canada's flag carrier is the 14th largest commercial airline in the world and serves 32 million customers annually with a fleet consisting of 335 aircraft. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, providing the world's most comprehensive air transportation network. Air Canada was ranked in 2007 as the "Best Airline in North America" for the second time in three years in an independent passenger survey of 14 million air travellers conducted by Skytrax. In addition, Air Canada was recently voted 'Best Airline in North America' and 'Best Airline in Canada' by the readers of Global Traveler magazine, and 'Best Business Class to Canada' by the readers of Business Traveler magazine. In 2007, Air Canada was recognized by the editors of Air Transport World as the airline industry leader in market innovation, specifically Air Canada's success in implementing an innovative and transparent pricing structure, its effectiveness in using online technology to meet consumers' needs and its fleet-wide renewal with a consistent, market-leading onboard product among North American airlines.
For further information:
For further information: Isabelle Arthur (Montréal), (514) 422-5788; Angela Mah (Vancouver), (604) 270-5741; Peter Fitzpatrick (Toronto), (416) 263-5576; aircanada.com