ABBOTSFORD, BC, June 27, 2015 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada rouge flight AC1979 touched down at the Abbotsford International Airport this morning, marking the start of new non-stop seasonal service from Toronto's Pearson International Airport. Returning home as the captain for this inaugural flight was Captain James Jeffrey Martin, who grew up in British Columbia's Lower Mainland and completed his aviation education and training in Abbotsford. Celebrations were held at both airports and in the community to inaugurate the daily service.
"Air Canada now offers the only non-stop flights between eastern Canada and Abbotsford, the largest municipality in BC's Fraser Valley Regional District. Our Abbotsford flights seamlessly connect at our largest hub at Toronto Pearson to and from Air Canada's extensive network of non-stop flights to Canadian, US and international destinations," said Benjamin Smith, President, Passenger Airlines at Air Canada.
"Customers also have the opportunity to accumulate and redeem Aeroplan miles on all Air Canada rouge flights. Air Canada is selectively deploying Air Canada rouge on a limited number of predominantly leisure markets in Canada as part of our strategy for sustainable, profitable growth and to complement our successful mainline domestic network," concluded Mr. Smith.
Service between Toronto and Abbotsford will be operated daily by Air Canada rouge to October 12, 2015 with 136-seat Airbus A319 aircraft offering a choice of premium and economy cabins.
"Air Canada rouge is a welcome addition to our airport community. The new service will definitely enhance the ease and convenience for our guests. We are looking forward to working with Air Canada to establish a long-term partnership," said Dave Holmberg, Abbotsford Airport Authority Chair.
Air Canada rouge's Toronto-Abbotsford service:
| Flight number |
Departs |
Arrives |
Day of the week |
| AC 1979 |
Toronto at 07:55 |
Abbotsford at 09:55 |
Daily |
| AC 1980 |
Abbotsford at 10:35 |
Toronto at 18:05 |
Daily |
New routes launched by Air Canada this year, in addition to today's Toronto-Abbotsford include: Toronto-Amsterdam, Montreal-Mexico City, Montreal-Venice, Vancouver-Osaka, Vancouver-Comox, Calgary-Halifax, Calgary-Nanaimo, Toronto-Austin, Toronto-Atlantic City and Calgary-Terrace. Announced new routes still to launch this year include: Toronto-Dubai and Toronto-Delhi.
About Air Canada and Air Canada rouge
Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving more than 190 destinations on five continents. Canada's flag carrier is among the 20 largest airlines in the world and in 2014 served more than 38 million customers. Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 64 Canadian cities, 52 destinations in the United States and 78 cities in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and South America. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation network serving 1,321 airports in 193 countries. Air Canada is the only international network carrier in North America to receive a Four-Star ranking according to independent U.K. research firm Skytrax. For more information, please visit: www.aircanada.com follow @AirCanada on Twitter and join Air Canada on Facebook.
Air Canada rouge is Air Canada's leisure airline. Together with Air Canada Vacations, Air Canada rouge offers competitively-priced travel to 48 exciting leisure destinations on 66 routes in Europe, Mexico, the U.S., the Caribbean, Asia, South America and Canada.
Air Canada rouge began operating July 1, 2013 with a start-up fleet of two Airbus A319 aircraft and two Boeing 767-300ER aircraft. Air Canada rouge currently operates a total of 33 aircraft including 20 Airbus A319 and 13 Boeing 767-300ER aircraft.
As a wholly-owned subsidiary, Air Canada rouge is backed by Air Canada's 77-year reputation for safety and reliability and Air Canada Vacations' 30-plus year history of vacation travel excellence. For more information, visit www.flyrouge.com or to book a flight visit www.aircanada.com. Visit Air Canada rouge on Facebook at www.facebook.com/aircanadarouge.
SOURCE Air Canada
Isabelle Arthur (Montréal), 514 422-5788, [email protected]; Peter Fitzpatrick (Toronto), 416 263-5576, [email protected]; Angela Mah (Vancouver), 604 270-5741, [email protected], Internet: aircanada.com
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