Air Canada and Air Canada Cargo today announced the initial list of planned routes for Boeing 767-300ER freighters scheduled to enter in service in October 2021. Air Canada is in the process of fully converting several of its Boeing 767s to freighters in order to completely participate in global cargo business opportunities.
The routes will operate from the Toronto Pearson International Airport and will link Toronto with Miami, Quito, Lima, Mexico City and Guadalajara, which will be the first time that Air Canada Cargo provides services in this destination.
Air Canada began the process of converting some of its Boeing 767s that have been retired from its passenger fleet into fully dedicated freighters. As part of that process, all seats are removed from the aircraft, a large door is cut into the fuselage to allow loading of palletized cargo, and the floor is reinforced to support additional weight.
Air Canada Cargo plans to have two freighters in service by the end of 2021, and more will join the fleet in 2022. Additional destinations to be served include Halifax, St. John’s, Madrid and Frankfurt.
Load, a key service in the current context
The addition of dedicated cargo aircraft to Air Canada’s fleet will allow Air Canada Cargo to provide consistent capacity on key air cargo routes, facilitating the movement of goods globally.
With these freighters, the company will enhance its capabilities to transport goods such as automovilistic and aerospace parts, oil and gas equipment, pharmaceuticals and perishables, as well as handle the growing demand for fast and reliable shipments of e-commerce goods.
Since March 2020, Air Canada has operated more than 9,000 cargo flights using its wide-body passenger aircraft, as well as certain temporarily modified Boeing 777s and Airbus A330s, which gained additional cargo space from the removal of passenger seats.
