Introducing a new, more efficient aircraft to the fleet means new routes to be added as well. For Air Canada the A220-300s joining the airline’s operations will open up a pair of new transcon-ish transborder routes starting in Spring 2020. Flights from Toronto to San Jose, CA and from Montreal to Seattle are slated to launch on 4 May 2020 using the new planes. Air Canada will also use the aircraft on existing routes between delivery and the new route launches as the A220 fleet grows.
The two routes announced today are the first of many future possibilities as the A220 will allow us to further develop our North American network, offering customers new routes and more robust year-round schedules.
– Mark Galardo, Vice President of Network Planning at Air Canada
Both new routes represent the only flights connecting their respective cities. The Montreal-Seattle service will offer good connection options onward across the Atlantic, including Casablanca, Paris, Nice, Lyon, Algiers, London, Frankfurt, Geneva, Rome, Dublin and others. Seattle currently sees Air Canada service from Toronto and Vancouver. The Toronto will join Vancouver in connecting San Jose into the Air Canada network. Both routes offer daytime flights in both directions rather than an eastbound redeye often used for newer transcon routes.
Air Canada will deploy is A220-300s from Montreal and Toronto on existing Canadian and transborder routes such as to Ottawa, Winnipeg, Calgary, Edmonton and New York – La Guardia before launching the new routes in May.
Seats, IFE/C to match(ish) the widebody fleet
In addition to the new routes launching with the type, Air Canada also unveiled details of the aircraft interior. Air Canada will offer three rows of business class (2-2 seating; 12 total seats) and 25 rows of economy class (2-3 seating; 125 total seats) on board. That is two rows more of seating than Korean Air offers on its A220-300 but also two fewer than Air Baltic’s layout or JetBlue’s planned configuration. It should deliver comfortable levels of personal space for passengers, especially with the widest seats in that class of aircraft.
When connecting through our hubs across Canada onward to international destinations, customers travelling on an A220 will benefit from a virtually seamless cabin experience offering the same level of service and comforts as on a widebody aircraft.
– Mark Galardo, Vice President of Network Planning at Air Canada
Every seat will feature embedded IFE screens, powered by the Panasonic Avionics eX1 platform, designed for narrow-body aircraft. The IFE system includes content available in 15 languages and featuring more than 1,000 hours of high-quality entertainment, including access to Bell Media’s premium entertainment service, Crave, and Canadian-based multi-platform audio service, Stingray. All passengers will have access to USB-A, USB-C and AC power outlets.
Air Canada will feature the Gogo 2Ku inflight WiFi connectivity solution on the A220 fleet. The solution is being installed at the factory, taking advantage of the capabilities first established for Delta Air Lines’ A220 fleet.
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