Air Canada has unveiled its summer 2027 route expansion, adding nonstop flights to Basel, Dubrovnik, Guangzhou, Oslo, and Shannon using the A321XLR and 787.
Well, well, well... At least, Matthew at LALF is gonna be pleased with Oslo (he was hoping for more Scandinavia, and neither AA nor UA did). Kinda surprised by CAN; would've hoped for SGN, but more mainland China makes sense, I guess (ya know, due to the hole unnecessary trade war inflicted upon them by you-know-who and our apparent contempt for our neighbors and former allies). Thus, Canada (and AC) is becoming closer to the EU (and the CCP. Oof. *deep sigh*)
@1990--Regarding your comment about SGN, I think CAN makes more sense for AC, particularly out of YVR. You may not realize that the SF Bay Area has not been North America's largest ethnic Chinese population for about 3 decades. That honor goes to Greater Vancouver, which experienced a huge influx of immigrants from Hong Kong prior to the 1997 hand-back to China. Most of those folks are native Cantonese speakers (Guangzhou/Canton) isn't far from HK) and many of those families' roots are in Guangzhou, from whick a lot of HK people defected when it was British. So, there is a lot of O&D traffic on this route. To me, the real surprise is that the route is already served by China Southern, so AC will have competition.
Pro tip--if you are ever in the Vancouver area, Richmond, BC, where YVR is located, has the best Chinese restaurant scene in North America. For a New Yorker such as yourself, think Flushing-Main Street on steroids.
Steve, pardon my wishful-thinking on Ho Chi Minh. Agreed, YVR-CAN does make more sense, especially with your further explanation. So, do you take the train, drive, or a short flight from SEA? (EWR-YVR is sometimes on AC's 787, so I'll add Richmond, BC, to my list! Yum!)
1990, I would add that ethnic Vietnamese populations are likely larger on the US side of the border than in Canada. I would love to see SGN nonstops from SEA but I am guessing that the route is too leisure and VFR oriented to sell a lot of premium seats. Alaska Airlines has not shown much interest in trying unusual routes in its international expansion thus far--it makes sense for them to get well-established first. DL or UA might enter the SGN market nonstop, but more likely from LAX and SFO, respectively, where there are larger Vietnamese communities than around here.
As for Richmond, I haven't gone for a while, but I usually drive (the train doesn't stop there and it's good to have a car while there anyway). From where I live, it's a 2.5 hour or so drive, depending upon traffic and border waits. The Blaine-White Rock border crossing can be very busy but at least it has a view (the Peace Arch and Boundary Bay). It isn't terrible if you have a Nexus card. Let me know when you're coming. 🙂
If ,United Delta and AA can't go nonstop to SGN why do you think a budget carrier like AC can do it
@Parnel--Given how formatting on OMAAT has changed, I can't tell if your comment was directed at me or 1990, but I will take a crack at it anyway.
It might be premature to say that DL and AA can't fly to SGN nonstop. It may well be that their analyses don't pencil out financially but they haven't really tried it in the post-COVID era (or maybe at all). I can see UA maybe trying SFO-SGN at some point, when they get more aircraft. Vietnam Airlines already operates that route. The largest Vietnamese community in the USA is in Southern California, particularly (but not limited to) Orange County, not far from LAX. I could see DL trying that route as it builds up its LAX hub.
AC has a couple of advantages over both UA and DL: YVR is closer to SE Asia than either SFO or LAX, meaning less fuel burn. Also, AC is currently the only nonstop operator from North America to BKK and those flights from YVR have been successful. SGN is a bit shorter flight than BKK from YVR, so why not? It's at least theoretically possible, particular with one stop service from Southern California and (for now), no competition.
Is it me or no hints from their video worked ..? I mean ok the dragon and the Swiss cress on the water bottle. But for the rest I’m still trying to figure it out lol
I think Lagos, Nigeria which was everyone's obvious guess, was the one AC snubbed. A bit bizarre.
I've just added these new routes to seats.aero, ready to be tracked 🙂
Tracked for what?
AC doesnt release their own J at non-dynamic prices. And they dont release J to partners.
Since I don't like crossing extra borders on international flights and not much Star Alliance loyalty, these new flights won't affect me much personally. Of course, though, as an avgeek, they interest me. As a hub, YUL doesn't interest me much simply because there isn't nonstop service to YUL from where I live. YVR and YYZ are at least possible.
What strikes me most about the schedules of these new routes is how so many of them are poorly timed for local O&D traffic. Arriving somewhere early in the morning makes it difficult (or expensive) to get into your hotel at the outbound end. The new YVR-CAN route seems particularly brutal in that regard, leaving YVR at 0035 and arriving at CAN at 0500. However, it seems that China Southern leaves YVR on that route at exactly the same time. AC seems to be betting that won't detract from O&D traffic but hedging the bet with a departure time that allows for a lot of connections from all over North America, particularly eastern Canada. It will be interesting to see how they do.
0500 CAN arrival also works for O/D business travel, especially if there are shower/hotel rooms available on arrival at the airport (like in AMS). You can freshen up, maybe change out of your travel wear, drop the bags at your overnight hotel, and go to work. All that without losing a day to travel (other than crossing the dateline) - you have a full day at home in YVR. Works just as well for O/D business travel for people based in CAN - work full day in YVR, have dinner, fly home.
Thanks, @SBS. I was looking at it from my own perspective, as a tourist. You provided good insights.
0500 CAN arrival works for some tourists as well - I'd take a redeye in J to Asia any time compared to a super long day flight.
@Volan--a later arrival is still a redeye flight in most cases. Arriving midday vs. at 0500 is a vast improvement, though, in terms of getting into a hotel room at your destination. You are correct, though, that such preferences are largely subjective amd my subjectivity is probably different from yours.
@voian, I've taken these one-long-night flights from JFK/BOS to Asia a couple of times as a tourist, but so far only to connect to other intra-Asia flights. I did fly to SYD, with the usual early morning arrival, but I was visiting a friend, so hotel was not an issue. In a few month I will take the JFK-HND redeye as a tourist, will see how it works out for the first day of sightseeing.
@Steve_from_Seattle, I am curious how much of O/D traffic to CAN is business vs tourism. My guess would be that business travel fraction is large. Somehow I imagine tourists to this region going to HKG rather than CAN.
@SBS--Thar is a very good question and I don't have a good answer. My thought process is colored by the fact that I have done a lot of domestic business travel over the years but my line of work never took me out of the country for business. It did gain me airline and hotel points and statuses, though. I typically earned domestically and burned internationally. Regardless, I tend to think about airline routes as a tourist.
nice to see a daytime flight for YYZ-LHR also
I've rarely heard much good about AC here. And, as a US citizen in a city with no TATL routes, why would I give up the benefit of clearing US customs/passport in SNN to do it during the connection in YYZ?
Yeah, that's kind of my issue with transiting via Canada, too, as well as having to go through Canadian passport control on the outbound leg. I much prefer clearing customs on return at my home airport as there is never the possibility of missing a connecting flight because of border controls.
I've never done it, but from what I read online is US pax arriving at YYZ transferring to an international flight on the same ticket need not reclaim bags nor go through any customs/passport controls.
Yes a friend just did that this year. Apparently it's a new initiative by the CBSA starting this 2026. International to International transit through YVR, YUL and YYZ on select flights can transit without collecting bags
If you sre entirely on Air Canada, you do not need to claim and recheck checked baggage. However, you still need to go through passport control.
Yeah, so from AC's website for US to International:
"You do not need to claim your checked baggage.
Follow purple signage for connections and E Gates
Have passport and boarding pass in hand for a cursory Canada Customs check
Follow signage for E Gates and proceed to your departure gate"
@This_comes_to_mind--a few things come to mind (no play on your user name intended):
1. You may well be correct here but bear in mind the source of the information you quoted. If transfers were difficult, it wouldn't be in AC's interest to disclose that.
2. A "cursory" passport check is still a passport check and it's still by an officer, not the airline (who will also check your passport). "Cursory" is a subjective term and officers have legal authority to use their discretion to make it a lot more formal if they decide to do so. Your mileage may vary.
3. Don't forget that your return trip is likely a bit more involved than the outbound trip as you clear US border formalities at the Canadian airport, as well as another security check. If your inbound flight is late or it's very busy at the US border check, you run the risk of missing your connection home, and at an airport that has limited flights to your destination.
I respect your right to travel via Canada but I typically don't want ro do it. It just seems like extra hassle to me. Whether it's worth it depends a lot on where you're trying to go and your starting point, as well as how much various options cost. I have lots of other options to Europe and Asia so likely will opt for those.
@Steve_from_Seattle CBSA just changed their policy this year, for YYZ T1, YVR and YUL. You do not need to pass through CBSA check at these airports for International Connections
Basel is kind of Switzerland and France (geographically in France, operated by both countries).
The full name is EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg, but Freiburg (Germany) is a bit of an exaggeration really.
Your passport is checked by French or Swiss officers, just depending who is in the booth you end up at. After passport control you can choose whether to pass French or Swiss customs, and there’s a secure road to Basel (through France) so you don’t need to pass a land border/customs to get there.
@Henry LAX
Switzerland is not part of the EU customs union. We still have land border checks for customs, just not for immigration.
If you're not Swiss, always choose the French exit. Much easier getting out of the airport.
Sign me up for that OSL flight. Can't believe how underserved this amazing city/country is from North America.
Unless you live in Toronto, you can go to Oslo connecting at many other airports, without having to fly A321.
Interesting! I can't really see all those destinations in their guessing game clip, but ok.
Basel, Dubrovnik and Guangzhou make perfect sense. Shannon is the odd one out here in my point of view. There's already quite some traffic across the pond to that airport, I wonder if there's really a need for more capacity...
It's quite hilarious that they add Oslo to the schedule, be it on the A321. SAS decided decades ago that 'Norwegians don't fly long haul', and routed all their long haul traffic via ARN and CPH, and they have maintained that viewpoint since. Just like in the colonial days, so to say: everything is centered around the two main capitals in Scandinavia. So now Emirates, Qatar, Ethiopian, Thai and Hainan Airways already fill the gaps that SAS refuses to fill (let's forget Norse, they only have a few seasonal routes and will be out of business before Christmas). And not just that, with widebodies even. So now Air Canada opening a route to Toronto is just adding to this running joke, even if it's not a daily flight (yet?). I'm happy though, as Oslo is well positioned geographically for connections to the US and Canada and Gardermoen is a small enough airport to be efficient for connecting traffic.
ps. SAS is only operating a route to EWR from OSL, and has some 'seasonal' operations aiming at JFK. So it's not a few routes, just one. And the seasonal one is to the same city...
Air Canada will be the first North American airline to fly to Guangzhou
They are not the first, but they are the only.
Northwest launched passenger service to Guangzhou in November 2004.
They will be the first nonstop from North America to CAN as Northwest served CAN from NRT only
I am impressd by the turn times at these European destinations. AC isn't messing around with the cabin cleaning, catering and re-fueling. Like an Indy pit stop going on.
I dont think AC has cleaned a cabin since the 90s given the amount of crumbs, dirt and yuck between seats in business.
Ben, That's not entirely true About CAN. Air Canada is not the first North American Airlines to Serve the city. Both NorthWest and United flied to CAN(Canton/Guangzhou) via NRT/HND on their fifth freedom flights from 2004 to 2009(Delta/NorthWest) & Mid-2010s(United)
UA applied slots of SFO-CAN from DOT and even started to sell tickets back in 2009, however shortly before launch UA cancelled the flight.
I remember that. And also during the beginning of the end of the pandemic, UA applied CAN-SFO & got the right again, but they never launch the flight either.
Shocked that UA wont even touch Scandia.....
As other might mentioned, Air Canada is not the first North American airlines to serve CAN, Northwest served CAN in the 2000s from NRT with their NRT based 757, however CAN-NRT was cancelled shortly after NW and DL's merger
Still not coming back to Mel post covid...damm!