By Skies Magazine | December 22, 2015 Estimated reading time 8 minutes, 38 seconds.
The Dreamliners are replacing the Boeing 767-300ER fleet, many of which have been handed across to Air Canada rouge.
Air Canada has taken delivery of its third Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner, unveiled at a special City of Toronto Signature Event in the Air Canada hangar on Nov. 19.
In June last year, Air Canada announced its expansion of international operations had yielded results better than anticipated.
Much of this is attributed to the successful introduction of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, which first joined the Air Canada fleet in May 2014. Air Canada ordered a total of 37 Dreamliners. It had received eight of the Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner model, followed in mid-2015 by the first of the 787-9s.
The balance of the 29 aircraft to be delivered will be the larger 787-9 variant, with the airline having adjusted the order to take fewer 787-8s than originally planned. Deliveries are anticipated to be completed in 2019.
The first of the larger Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners was delivered to Toronto Lester B. Pearson International Airport July 31. Air Canada is replacing its Boeing 767-300ERs with the 787 family.
The Dreamliners are replacing the Boeing 767-300ER fleet, many of which have been handed across to Air Canada rouge. The 787 is the world’s most fuel efficient aircraft, burning about 20 per cent less than the 767, which it is replacing.
All of Air Canada’s Dreamliners feature the new Air Canada interiors in a three cabin configuration, including international business class with fully lie-flat seats, along with premium economy and economy classes.
Air Canada’s next-generation in-flight entertainment system is available in all cabin configurations. The 787 features larger windows, which are dimmed electronically, a feature unique to the Dreamliner.
The third 787-9 Dreamliner for Air Canada is featured as the centrepiece of the City of Toronto Signature event.
It also features larger overhead bins, higher levels of humidity and increased cabin pressure for customer comfort. The Boeing 787-9 seats 298 passengers and has a range of 15,372 kilometres, compared to the Boeing 787-8, which is configured to carry 251 passengers with a range of 14,500 kilometres.
The longer version of the Dreamliner inaugurated Air Canada’s new routes to Dubai, United Arab Emirates on Nov. 3 and Delhi Indira Gandhi International Airport starting Nov. 1.
Dubai is operated three times a week, and Delhi is four times, increasing to daily in 2016.
The 787-9 initially operated on Toronto to Vancouver routes in August, and Toronto to Milan and Munich in September and October prior to deployment in the new routes. Dreamliners currently serve a growing list of routes from Toronto and Vancouver.
The economy cabin on the 787-9 Dreamliner features 247 seats in three-three-three configuration at 30 inch pitch.
They are featured on Air Canada’s routes from Vancouver to Asia, including Shanghai, Beijing, Tokyo and Seoul; and select routes from Toronto, including Tel Aviv, Copenhagen, London, Paris, Milan, Zurich and Tokyo.
“Air Canada is very excited to take delivery of its new Boeing 787-9. This new aircraft’s larger capacity and greater range will accelerate our international expansion strategy and allow us to offer customers more non-stop services to new international destinations,” said Benjamin Smith, president, Passenger Airlines at Air Canada.
“By extending our reach with our new non-stop service to Dubai, we are providing customers more convenient options for traveling to the Middle East using the newest, most modern aircraft in our fleet.”
Air Canada’s new first class product was introduced on its Dreamliner fleet, and features full lay flat capability.
Air Canada hosted the City of Toronto Signature Event with Mayor John Tory and provided the Toronto business community and media with an opportunity to board and check out the new Dreamliner.
The annual event recognizes Toronto businesses and celebrated Toronto’s role as a global city, with almost 1,000 business leaders in attendance. Its goal is to expand the city’s economic development.
Pearson International Airport is Air Canada’s global hub. With 800 departures and arrivals per day, it is Air Canada’s busiest hub in terms of customer volume and as an international gateway for global connecting traffic through Canada into the U.S., Asia, and Europe.
The cockpit of the 787 features heads up displays and four large cockpit displays.
Almost 21 million arriving and departing Air Canada passengers travelled through Pearson in 2014. It serves 153 destinations worldwide: 32 destinations in Canada; 48 in the United States; 34 in the Caribbean, Mexico and Central America; 27 in Europe, the Middle East and India; six in Asia; six in South America; and one in Australia.
Air Canada employs 12,000 people in Toronto, with more than $1 billion in salary and wages annually, with $3 billion in total annual expenditures in Ontario. Expansion plans include double digit growth annually for the next few years according to Smith.
An investment of $1 billion in the Toronto super hub will compound the company’s growth, expanding facilities, routes and frequencies. New hangars will be custom built to accommodate the Dreamliners, replacing older smaller hangars.
Toronto Mayor John Tory is briefed on the features of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner by Benjamin Smith, president of Air Canada Passenger Airlines.
“We have a massive international growth strategy centred in Toronto, leveraging the geography of this city to expand globally by accessing traffic flow to and from the United States by this great facility we have in Toronto as a transit point using aircraft such as the 787 to be able to connect Toronto with many more destinations around the world,” Smith said.
“That will of course have a tremendous economic spinoff for the economy here, for businesses based here and encouraging more businesses to come here, conventions, and of course tourists. We are very happy to be partnered with the city to help accelerate both of our plans for expansion. ”
