by Mia Taylor
Last updated: 5:45 PM ET, Mon November 5, 2018
With 2018 quickly winding down, Air Canada spoke with TravelPulse about some of the airline's most notable news and developments of the past year and what can be expected in the coming year, including new routes, new lounges, and elevated travel experiences.
Air Canada continues to grow its routes and upgrade its fleet. Some of the newest routes from the airline include a Toronto to Vienna addition; Montreal to Bordeaux, France and also a Montreal to Raleigh-Durham offering.
The Toronto to Vienna route will be the first to kick-off, starting on April 29, 2019, and operating year-round. The daily non-stop flights are to be flown by the airline's state-of-the-art Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
The service to Bordeaux, France, the world's wine capital, is slated to begin on June 15, 2019, and will operate four days a week until September 15, 2019.
As for the Montreal to Raleigh-Durham addition, it's part of Air Canada's effort to expand its footprint in North Carolina. The new non-stop route is scheduled to begin June 3, 2019, with the company's Air Canada Express affiliates offering one daily round-trip flight on the 50-seat Bombardier CRJ-100/200 regional jets. Air Canada is the only airline flying non-stop between the cities.
Yet another exciting and notable development for Air Canada was the introduction of the Boeing 737MAX.
A more personalized version of the 787 Dreamliner, the industry's top-of-the-line modern aircraft, the 737MAX represents a powerful step forward in engineering and style, further elevating the everyday travel experience.
"The quiet engine technology creates 40 percent less noise," said Anna Innis, of Air Canada's USA Sales team. "It's also equipped with LED Mood lighting, huge entertainment screens and an incredible content selection."
The content selection is vast enough to impress even the most experienced film buffs, Innis added. The new 737 MAX is available on select flights within North America and international routes.
Back on the ground, Air Canada currently operates 22 award-winning Maple Leaf lounges around the world. One of the most recent additions is the new lounge in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Opened in mid-September, the lounge seats up to 40 customers in an elegant space that showcases Canadian design and art, including work by two Saskatchewan artists, Shawn Evans, and Holly Friesen.
Amenities at the newest lounge in the Maple Leaf network include a full-service bar offering a wide selection of beverages, including Canadian wines and specialty coffees; a self-serve buffet area and comfortable seating with tarmac views.
For business travelers planning to work on-site there's also a cyber counter equipped with PCs and color printing, complimentary Wi-Fi and access to a variety of digital newspaper and magazine content via a PressReader app.
By the end of this year, Air Canada will add still more lounges, including one in St. John, Newfoundland, and at New York's LaGuardia, in the airport's renovated terminal, said Innis.
All of Air Canada's efforts, both on the ground and in the skies, appear to be paying off.
In 2018, Air Canada was named Best Airline in North America for the seventh time in nine years by Skytrax World Airline Awards. Innis says the airline has no plans to slow down its many efforts.
Air Canada is continuing to roll out satellite Wi-Fi on its international fleet, including its Boeing 777s and now on its Rouge Boeing 767-300ER aircraft, with installations also soon to begin on its Boeing 787s and Airbus A330s.
"On the technology side, Air Canada Partnered with Amadeus for the full Amadeus Alta Suite passenger service system (PSS) including reservations, inventory, and departure control solutions," continued Innis. "Once fully implemented, this will enable Air Canada to enhance the customer experience by delivering more consistent and personalized customer service based on individual customer preferences."
The new system will also improve operational efficiency for the airline and achieve closer integration with its codeshare partners and within the Star Alliance - more than two-thirds of which are also Alta carriers, said Innis.
And finally, Innis predicted that coming year will bring continued passenger demand and growing competition with budget airlines. But Air Canada is poised to hold its own amid the changing market dynamics.
"Air Canada is a full-service global carrier that can meet the complex demands with a premium product as well as competing against budget airlines with our Leisure Carrier, Air Canada Rouge and a new suite of branded fares designed to appeal to customers at various price points," said Innis.
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