Air Canada extends its network to Austria

Air Canada announced today that it will offer its customers five times weekly codeshare service on Star Alliance partner Austrian Airlines' new non-stop service between Toronto and Vienna starting April 28, 2001.

"We are very pleased to offer our international customers access to our Star Alliance partner's new non-stop service to Austria's capital," said Danielle Poudrette, Vice President, Marketing. "With this first codeshare agreement with Austrian Airlines, we are further expanding our European network to provide our customers with improved access to many key destinations."

"We are delighted to provide our Canadian guests with a non-stop service not only landing into the heart of Europe, but also offering connecting flights to as many as 33 cities in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Republics, not to mention many more destinations in the Middle East," declared Wolfgang Prock-Schauer, Executive Vice President, Network, Austrian Airlines.

Flights on the new route will be operated with Airbus A330 aircraft featuring Austrian Airlines' Grand Class and Economy Class service. Austrian Airlines flight OS528 (AC9970) will leave Toronto at 6:40 p.m. and will arrive in Vienna at 9:15 a.m. From Vienna, flight OS527 (AC9971) will depart at 11:20 a.m. and will arrive in Toronto at 2:55 p.m.

The codeshare flights will allow for the best possible connections in Toronto to and from Air Canada's domestic and transborder destinations.

Customers travelling to Vienna will also enjoy convenient connections provided by the Austrian Airlines Group to and from other key destinations such as Salzburg, Prague and Budapest.

Customers will enjoy the usual Star Alliance benefits, including through check-in, lounge access as well as qualifying bonus mileage accumulation and redemption.

The Austrian Airlines Group comprising Austrian Airlines, Lauda Air and Tyrolean Airways serve more than 120 destinations in 68 countries with a combined fleet of some 90 aircraft. More than eight million passengers used the Group's services in 2000, travelling to and from Vienna, Innsbruck and Salzburg on 410 flights per day.