The Dreamliner, however, has
changed the economics. Marcel
Forget, Air Canada’s vice president
of network planning in a recent interview
pointed out that “the airplane is perfectly
suited in terms of size, in terms of payload…
Th e economics of the airplane are much
better than previous generation widebodies
used on that route.”

As for cargo, the Dreamliner will be
flying clothing, pharmaceuticals, fresh
produce and Indian sweets on the Delhi-
Toronto route, according to Air Canada
spokeswoman Angela Mah. On the reverse from Toronto Air Canada will be carrying
pharmaceuticals and aerospace parts from
Quebec; machinery and automotive tools
from Ontario, as well as oil field and mining
equipment from Alberta.

India, however, is but one part of the
Air Canada story. Th e carrier has taken
delivery of 10 B787-8 Dreamliners from its
order of 37 aircraft with the last two being
the B787-9s that are the larger version with
a longer range, higher cargo capacity at, of
course, lower unit cost. These B787s have
been put into service to fl y to six continents
as Air Canada adds routes to Seoul, Dubai, Morocco, Budapest, Prague, Warsaw and
Glasgow.

In tune with the Dreamliners, Air
Canada Cargo has launched a new cargo
version of its mobile app, a stand-alone
version that has been uniquely designed
for Air Canada Cargo customers. The
mobile application for Apple iOS allows
customers to track shipments, find flights,
view schedules and receive notifications
about shipments, all from a single location,
the company said.

Last year, the cargo division introduced
a simplified pricing for its AC Absolute
solution and from August this year,
a new on-line booking tool has been
operationalised that completes a booking
and sends an air waybill (AWB) number in
less than two minutes. Th is booking tool
takes care of all the offerings, including
temperature-controlled services and
hazardous goods transportation.

On the international front, Air
Canada has tied up with Air China for
a comprehensive revenue sharing joint
venture that will provide for a partnership
on routes between Canada and China
which will stimulate traffic growth between
the two countries.

Th e joint venture will generate additional
service and pricing benefits for consumers
travelling between the two countries as
well as provide for enhanced cooperation
between the two carriers in the areas of
sales, marketing and airport operations.