Air Canada celebrates new international routes

Air Canada welcomed its travel partners to celebrate the launch of 11 new international routes this year, including the carrier’s first flight to Africa.

Agents, tour operators and destination reps joined Air Canada to mark the upcoming launches, complete with a chance to experience a selection of the new destinations through virtual reality headsets.

The new services include a wide range of destinations from three Canadian gateways: from Vancouver, flights to Brisbane, London and Dublin; from Montreal, service to Lyon and Casablanca (marking Air Canada’s first direct flight to Africa); and from Toronto, new flights to Budapest, Warsaw, Prague, Glasgow, London-Gatwick and Seoul.

A similar celebration last week marked the launch of the three new Eastern Europe routes.

Duncan Bureau, vice-president of global sales for Air Canada, said that the international expansion (along with several new transborder routes coming on line this summer) marks the airline’s continued growth, with an emphasis on Toronto Pearson International Airport.

“The Toronto hub is more and more important for us,” said Bureau. “We continue to grow here and strategically it’s important for us; Toronto as a super-hub is something we strongly believe in.”

PHOTO: Of Air Canada: Robert Trudeau, senior director – corporate & business development sales; Duncan Bureau, vice-president – global sales; Vijay Bathija, vice-president – commercial; Ed Doyle, vice-president, flight operations.