Air Canada begins flying Boeing 787 Dreamliners in spring 2014

http://787.aircanada.com/en

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/repo...g-dreamliners-in-spring-2014/article15758177/

Air Canada will take delivery of the first of 37 Boeing 787 Dreamliner wide-body jets in the spring of 2014, with the first route the plane will fly to be Toronto-Tel Aviv.

The airline has posted visuals of the aircraft and seating and cabin amenities on its website.

The high-tech Dreamliner – which has encountered several technical problems since its launch, after a three-year delay – is part of a major renewal program for Air Canada’s fleet.

 

In my inbox this morning:
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Dear Slalom,

Introducing Air Canada’s Boeing 787 Dreamliner – a new standard for International Business Class. Experience luxurious 180-degree lie-flat seats with direct aisle access, adjustable cushion firmness and headrest cushions complete with a massage feature.





Enjoy the latest generation of inflight entertainment on enhanced definition 18-inch touch-screens with a touch control handset. Delight in Lavazza espresso at 35,000 feet in newly designed cabin interiors.

All this and much more to discover aboard Boeing’s revolutionary new aircraft featuring the latest in cabin comfort and anti-jet lag technologies.

Air Canada’s first Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft officially joins the fleet in April 2014.

 

And sadly a new standard for Y, with 9-abreast seating (7-abreast for premium economy).

I do like the idea of a decent espresso at 30,000 feet though!

 

It's interesting that AC has selected a completely different design for the 787s and the new 777s. The logic defies me there, unless the 787-style interior is not available yet. Or it doesn't work well on a 20" wider aircraft?

The 787 has only 20 J seats, and 21 in Premium Economy. But I don't expect to be seeing many of them flying out of the bread-and-butter routes (to Europe and Asia) out YYZ anyway, most of them will get assigned to thinner routes where the economics make more sense.

 

No doubt on YEG-LHR.

 

If you are referring to the high density 777s, those interiors were never intended to be AC standard (supplied by Boeing to off-set delivery delays on the 787s and specifically designed for high density routes) and it was made clear the 787s would have the new interiors that would become standards as the 767s are retired, along with the A330s, and the 777s ultimately refurb'd with the new 787 seats and three-classes. AA has a similar 1-2-1 configuration on its new 777s in business, 3-3-3 in E+ and 3-4-3 in coach. Most carriers have adopted 3-3-3 on their 787s for economy and many have also gone to 2-2-2 in business (UA for example).

 

http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/1275373/air-canada-to-launch-tokyo-haneda-dreamliner-service-from-Toronto

MONTREAL, Dec. 6, 2013 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada today announced that it will operate daily flights between Toronto-Pearson and Tokyo-Haneda (Tokyo International Airport) beginning July 1, 2014 using the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The new year-round service will be both the only non-stop flight between Canada and Tokyo-Haneda, located less than 30 minutes from downtown Tokyo, and the first daytime flight to Tokyo-Haneda from North America. This is the first deployment of Air Canada's Dreamliner -- featuring the airline's new seating and cabin amenities -- in the Asian market. The new route will complement Air Canada's existing flights to Tokyo Narita International Airport from Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver.
"Air Canada is very pleased to offer customers, especially business travelers to Japan, the option of flying to Tokyo-Haneda airport aboard our new 787 Dreamliner. Located less than 30 minutes by monorail from Tokyo's central business district, Tokyo-Haneda is Japan's busiest airport and is popular with travelers going into the city. Moreover, with North America's only daytime flight to Tokyo-Haneda, the schedule is convenient for those who want to maximize productivity during their trip. It will also further strengthen our Toronto global hub, whose easy connection processes and shorter elapsed flying times make it ideal for travelers to and from the U.S. north-east," said Ben Smith, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer of Air Canada.

"To provide customers choice, Air Canada will continue to offer service from Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver to Narita airport. Both Japanese airports offer a wealth of onward domestic and international connections through ANA and our other Star Alliance partners. All flights to Japan feature Air Canada's international business class with lie-flat seats, Maple Leaf Lounge access and concierge service for eligible customers, Aeroplan redemption and accumulation, and the other amenities for which Air Canada is recognized by Skytrax as the Best Airline in North America."

Air Canada will begin taking delivery of 37 Boeing 787 Dreamliners in spring 2014, further raising the bar in customer comfort. The aircraft features a brand new contemporary décor and three cabins of service, International Business with 180-degree lie-flat pod seating, Premium Economy and Economy. It also offers an extensive choice of in-flight entertainment on enhanced-definition, seat-back touch screens along with power outlets and USB ports available for all customers. Visit 787.aircanada.com for full details and a virtual tour of the aircraft and its cabin amenities.

Tickets for Toronto-Tokyo-Haneda go on sale starting December 10, 2013 with service beginning July 1, 2014.

Flight Depart Arrive
AC 005 Toronto at 13:00 Tokyo-Haneda at 14:55 (plus one day)
AC 006 Tokyo-Haneda at 17:40 Toronto at 16:40


With the new Tokyo-Haneda route, our fifth Asian airport to be served from our Toronto hub, Air Canada will offer the most flights of any airline between Canada and Japan with service from three Canadian cities:

• Daily Toronto-Narita service.
• Three times weekly Calgary-Narita non-stop service, increasing up to daily service during summer 2014.
• Daily Vancouver-Narita non-stop service.

 

http://www.theprovince.com/business...ne+Canada+Dreamliner+debut/9255830/story.html
Air Canada says it will start using its new Boeing 787 Dreamliners domestically when they start to arrive as early as March, serving routes from Toronto to Montreal and Vancouver before rolling the planes out more broadly across its network.

 

Well, well! I may yet see the inside of an AC 787 ... our offices (and my hotel) are close to HND so this might work well. The arrival/departure times are quite similar as well. It'll be interesting to see how the prices compare between YYZ-NRT and YYZ-HND.

 

The Spruce Goose!

 

Quite. But HND has better onward domestic connections, and it's closer to most locations in Greater Tokyo.

 

Yes, HND is much better for domestic transfers than NRT. Will be interesting to see how this plays out since the govt. here promised NRT that international flights to HND would not conflict with NRT core business.

 

If it's only one AC flight per day on a 788 (251 seats) to HND, compared to three 77Ws a day to NRT (1047 seats total) it's probably not a problem. Shifting more flights would cause a problem -- but that's not likely anyway as it would lose the international connections pax.

 

During this week’s schedule update, Air Canada continues to delay Boeing 787 service entry, as a result of delivery delays. Revised Boeing 787 operation as of 18APR14 as follow.
Toronto – Zurich Boeing 787 service begins from 25MAY14 to 29JUN14 (YYZ departure), instead of eff 18MAY14
AC878 YYZ1810 – 0750+1ZRH 788 x3
AC879 ZRH1000 – 1250YYZ 788 x4

Toronto – Tel Aviv Boeing 787 service begins from 15JUL14, instead of eff 01JUL14
AC084 YYZ1830 – 1205+1TLV 788 D
AC085 TLV1350 – 1850YYZ 788 D

Planned Boeing 787 service on Toronto – Tokyo Haneda route, starting 01JUL14, remains unchanged.

On Domestic Toronto – Montreal route, Boeing 787 to operate on 21MAY14 only.

(source: airlineroute.net)

 

Here they come:
This Boeing 787 Is Just the Beginning for Air Canada
http://www.fool.com/investing/gener...g-787-is-just-the-beginning-for-air-cana.aspx

 

Excellent! That means a 20% drop in fuel surcharges!

 

I spotted an Air Canada 787 at YHZ recently. They've got them flying back and forth between YYZ and YHZ before they launch overseas service to work the kinks out.