AIR CANADA REPORTS RECORD LOAD FACTOR FOR OCTOBER

MONTREAL, Nov. 4 /CNW Telbec/ - For the month of October, Air Canada reported a record system load factor of 80.3 per cent on a consolidated basis with Jazz (from which Air Canada purchases regional capacity), versus 79.6 per cent in October 2009, an increase of 0.7 percentage points. System traffic increased 9.3 per cent on a system wide capacity increase of 8.3 per cent.

"I am very pleased to report a record load factor of 80.3 per cent for the month of October, on a consolidated basis with Jazz," said Calin Rovinescu, President and Chief Executive Officer. "These record load factor results, led by a 6.0 percentage point year-over-year increase on the Pacific, were achieved as we continued to increase utilization of our existing fleet and deploy capacity to pursue strategic opportunities in international markets. As we reported in our third quarter financial results issued today, new international routes performed well. Traffic increased in all markets Air Canada serves, led by the Pacific with 25.1 per cent growth from the previous year. For the first 10 months of 2010, year-to-date traffic increased 8.5 per cent with a load factor of 82.4 per cent, up +1.3 percentage points, compared to the same period in 2009. I thank our employees throughout the company for delivering an award winning product and meeting On-Time Performance Objectives for the month. Their hard work and professionalism is recognized by some of our most discerning customers, as 71 percent of Canadian business travellers surveyed by Ipsos-Reid named Air Canada as their preferred airline in the firm's 2010 Canadian Business Travel Study, the third consecutive year of improvement in Air Canada's ratings."

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    ------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                 CONSOLIDATED
                       (AIR CANADA MAINLINE AND JAZZ)
    ------------------------------------------------------------------------
                              OCTOBER                    YEAR-TO-DATE
    ------------------------------------------------------------------------
                       2010     2009   Change       2010     2009  Change
    ------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Traffic
    (RPMs mln)        4,207    3,850    +9.3%     44,326   40,849    +8.5%
    ------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Capacity
    (ASMs mln)        5,238    4,835    +8.3%     53,817   50,338    +6.9%
    ------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Load Factor        80.3%    79.6%   +0.7 pts    82.4%    81.1%   +1.3 pts
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
              RPMs    1,287    1,258    +2.3%     13,490   13,243    +1.9%
              ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Canada    ASMs    1,589    1,563    +1.7%     16,703   16,533    +1.0%
              ---------------------------------------------------------------
              LF       81.0%    80.5%   +0.5 pts    80.8%    80.1%   +0.7 pts
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
              RPMs      591      534   +10.7%      6,589    6,060    +8.7%
    US        ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Trans-    ASMs      807      731   +10.4%      8,660    8,033    +7.8%
    border    ---------------------------------------------------------------
              LF       73.2%    73.1%   +0.1 pts    76.1%    75.4%   +0.7 pts
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
              RPMs    1,115    1,046    +6.6%     11,637   10,809    +7.7%
              ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Atlantic  ASMs    1,431    1,296   +10.4%     13,826   12,823    +7.8%
              ---------------------------------------------------------------
              LF      77.9%     80.7%   -2.8 pts    84.2%    84.3%   -0.1 pts
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
              RPMs     838       670   +25.1%      7,774    6,350   +22.4%
              ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Pacific   ASMs     930       797   +16.7%      8,689    7,431   +16.9%
              ---------------------------------------------------------------
              LF      90.1%     84.1%   +6.0 pts    89.5%    85.5%   +4.0 pts
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
              RPMs     376       342    +9.9%      4,836    4,387   +10.2%
    Latin     ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Amer      ASMs     481       448    +7.4%      5,939    5,518    +7.6%
    &         ---------------------------------------------------------------
    Other     LF      78.2%     76.3%   +1.9 pts    81.4%    79.5%   +1.9 pts
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------
    

%SEDAR: 00001324EF

For further information: Isabelle Arthur (Montréal), 514 422-5788; Peter Fitzpatrick (Toronto), 416 263-5576; Angela Mah (Vancouver), 604 270-5741; Internet: aircanada.com