Air Canada Operates 4,000th All-Cargo Service Since March

(31 Oct 2021) Earlier this week, Air Canada operated its 4,000th all-cargo service since commencing such flights in March 2020.

The 4,000th flight from Toronto to Lima carried an assortment of freight from around the world including pharmaceuticals, water purifying equipment and vehicle parts.

Since the start of the ongoing global COVID19 pandemic, Air Canada Cargo has transported a wide range of goods on its cargo-only flights, including PPE for frontline healthcare workers.

"It is impressive that the cargo team re-engineered its business model and network for cargo-only flights in March and has now successfully operated 4,000 such flights onboard both mainline widebody aircraft, as well as seven transformed widebody aircraft enabling cargo transport in the cabin," said Lucie Guillemette, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer. "These initiatives have helped solidify our ability to meet heightened demand for air cargo capacity globally and have contributed to the growth of Air Canada's successful Cargo division at an unprecedented pace. This ability to quickly pivot exemplifies Air Canada's commitment to innovate and seize opportunities."

In anticipation of the requirement for air cargo capacity to ship and distribute COVID19 vaccines in Canada and elsewhere, Air Canada Cargo has undergone an extensive operational readiness exercise to ensure training, procedures and facilities are updated and reflect current requirements and standards for transporting pharmaceuticals, including achieving IATA's CEIV Pharma certification in July 2020.

Recently, Air Canada successfully concluded a collective agreement amendment with its pilots, represented by the Air Canada Pilots Association to enable Air Canada to competitively operate dedicated cargo aircraft.

The airline is now finalizing plans to convert several of its owned Boeing 767-300ER aircraft to freighters to fully participate in global cargo commercial opportunities.

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