aviation - the past, present and future of flight

A

ir Canada turned 80 last year

and much has changed at the

airline since it became a founding

member of the Star Alliance in

May 1997. As a direct result of Star Alliance

collaboration, the carrier joined with United

Airlines, Lufthansa, SAS and Thai Airways

International to introduce the world’s  rst

interline electronic ticket on June 14, 2000,

enabling passengers to book itineraries on

multiple airlines. The new millennium also

brought the airline’s  rst non-stop  ights to

To k y o.

One of the national carrier’s main rivals,

Canadian Airlines, was acquired through a

merger on January 1, 2001 and, at the time,

made the combined airline the world’s 12th

largest.

The organisation also made its  rst

venture into the low-cost market by

launching subsidiary, Air Canada Tango,

based in Montreal. Boeing 737-200s were

used, alongside A320s for the operation,

offering low-fare services on some existing

routes in Canada, as well as holiday

locations, such as Florida.

The aircraft sported a purple tail but still

incorporated the maple leaf used by the

parent carrier.

Air Canada’s regional activities were

regrouped under the Jazz brand, created in

2001 to encompass the operations of the

then regional subsidiaries of Air BC, Air Nova,

Air Ontario and Canadian Regional Airlines.

Air Canada began another discount, no-

frills business in 2002 under the Zip name.

Routes were mainly between western

Canadian cities in direct competition with

WestJet.

Zip’s  eet of Boeing 737-200s were

painted in one of four bright colours (green,

orange, fuchsia and blue) with ‘zip’ titles on

the tail. They had 118 economy seats.

Both brands were rolled into Air Canada

with Tango becoming its well known lowest

branded fare while Zip routes were absorbed

into the mainline business.

By its  fth anniversary as a member of Star

Alliance in 2002, Air Canada employed

30,000 personnel with its airlines  ying more

than 30 million passengers each year to 729

airports in 124 countries.

It was also the Canadian carrier’s 65th

anniversary and an Airbus A320 was painted

in a commemorative livery, at its centre a

giant maple leaf had been created using the

names of 40,000 employees and retirees.

In a further celebration, a Lockheed L10A

Electra, refurbished by staff and wearing the

colours of Air Canada’s predecessor, Trans-

Canada Airlines, (TCA),  ew from Toronto to

Ottawa.

The business was extended by the

introduction of Jetz, a charter company

arranging travel for professional sports

teams, entertainment groups and corporate

clients. Four Boeing 737-200s  tted with 48

seats were used. The word ‘jetz’ appeared

in black under the main title, on the aircraft

fuselage. Currently this division uses three

A319s with 58 seats

A year later, after posting numerous

losses, Air Canada was forced to  le for

bankruptcy protection which was granted in

April 2003. Difficulties initially stemmed from

the downturn in global air travel following the

9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001.

AIR CANADA

GLOBAL AMBITIONS

The Canadian carrier’s progress is reviewed by Martyn Cartledge.

78 Aviation News incorporating Jets February 2018

Above: Air Canada has taken delivery of 25

Boeing 787 Dreamliners, with 12 more on

order. Air Canada

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