Air Canada Launches Montreal-Lima Service; First Year-Round Non-Stop South American Flights from Montreal

MONTREAL, Dec.17, 2017 /CNW Telbec/ - The arrival of flight AC1942 at Lima's Jorge Chávez International Airport this morning marks the successful launch Air Canada's non-stop service between Montreal and Lima, Peru, Montreal's first year-round link to the southern hemisphere. The twice weekly flights will be operated by Air Canada Rouge with 282-seat Boeing 767-300ER aircraft featuring Premium Rouge and Economy class service.

"Air Canada is continuing its global expansion with the launch of Montreal-Lima the first South American route from our Montreal hub that will offer business and leisure travelers as well as freight forwarders from Quebec and Atlantic Canada convenient access to Peru. This new route will complement our existing flights from Toronto, and strategically position Air Canada as an important player in the growing market between Montreal and Latin America. South America will be the third new continent Air Canada serves from Montreal in two years, after Africa (Casablanca and Algiers) and Asia (Shanghai.)," said Benjamin Smith, President, Passenger Airlines at Air Canada. "This concludes an exceptional year of growth out of Montreal-Trudeau with the introduction of eight new destinations. Our global expansion will continue next year as we have already announced service to eight new destinations including Tokyo-Narita (Japan), Dublin (Ireland), Lisbon (Portugal) and Bucharest (Romania). Over the past five years Air Canada has increased capacity from Montreal by 83% and added 29 new destinations."

"The new direct flight now offered between Montreal and Lima opens up a very exciting field of possibilities.Montreal residents and companies will now have easy access to all of the cultural, economic and social richness of Lima and South America. Similarly, Montreal will definitely attract more tourists, workers and students as a result of this new flight, which will increase its appeal and highlight all that Montreal has to offer. This new connection between our two cities reinforces our position as a major international hub. Enjoy your flight!" said Valérie Plante, Mayor of Montreal.

"We're very proud to welcome this first year-round direct link to South America," said Philippe Rainville, President and CEO of Aéroports de Montréal. "Whenever a destination is added to our already very varied service offering, a new door to the world opens for the Greater Montréal area, and for Québec as a whole. Thanks to Air Canada, Peru has never been so accessible for travellers seeking new adventures. This new route, which is being inaugurated today, once again demonstrates Montréal-Trudeau's position as an international hub."

This new route also leverages Montreal as a pivotal connection point for cargo. This new route will facilitate the flow of air freight between Lima and other key markets in Air Canada's network, including Shanghai, Tokyo, Tel Aviv, London, Frankfurt, Paris, Brussels and other major trade points.  The schedule provides for one of the best transit times available.

Flights are time timed to optimize connectivity at Air Canada's Montreal hub to and from the airline's extensive network across North America and globally. All flights provide for Aeroplan accumulation and redemption, and for eligible customers, priority check-in, Maple Leaf Lounge access, priority boarding and other benefits.

Air Canada at Montreal-Trudeau airport

In 2017 Air Canada started service to Shanghai (China), Marseille (France), Dallas/Ft. Worth (U.S.), Washington/Dulles (U.S.), Keflavik (Iceland), Tel-Aviv (Israel), Algiers (Algeria) and to Lima (Peru).

Air Canada's has announced eight new destinations from Montreal for 2018: Victoria (British Columbia), Tokyo-Narita (Japan), Phoenix, Pittsburgh and Baltimore (U.S.), Dublin (Ireland), Lisbon (Portugal) and Bucharest (Romania).

With flights to 23 U.S. cities, the most of any airline, it has never been easier to connect in Montreal to Air Canada's global network including Paris, Lyon, Geneva, Brussels and Casablanca. With the introduction of our new international services from Montreal to Europe, Asia and North Africa, international travelers are increasingly finding that connecting through Montreal on Air Canada is the most convenient way to fly to and from the U.S. on North America's Best Airline as rated by Skytrax.

About Air Canada

Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving more than 200 airports on six continents.  Canada's flag carrier is among the 20 largest airlines in the world and in 2016 served close to 45 million customers.  Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 64 airports in Canada, 60 in the United States and 98 in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, 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 1,300 airports in 191 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, which also named Air Canada the 2017 Best Airline in North America.  For more information, please visit: www.aircanada.com/media, follow @AirCanada on Twitter and join Air Canada on Facebook.

SOURCE Air Canada