Air Canada Inaugurates Toronto-Prague Service

New route begins Air Canada Rouge's Central European summer expansion

MONTREAL, May 30, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - The arrival of flight AC1922 from Toronto-Pearson at Václav Havel Airport Prague this morning marks the beginning of Air Canada Rouge's expansion into Central Europe this summer. The seasonal service, operating three-times a week, offers customers the only non-stop connection between Canada and the Czech Republic on a network carrier.

"We are pleased to add Prague, one of Europe's most visited cities and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to our growing international network. Air Canada will operate the most seats and frequencies between Canada and the Czech Republic this summer and, as the only network carrier flying between the two countries, it offers customers a wide range of onward connections throughout the rest of Air Canada's extensive network. The Czech Capital is the first of three new destinations Air Canada Rouge will serve in Central Europe this summer from Toronto, soon to be followed by Budapest and Warsaw, providing the widest range of travel options for the growing traffic between the region and North America," said Benjamin Smith, President, Passenger Airlines, at Air Canada.

Flights will be operated with an Air Canada Rouge Boeing 767-300ER, featuring Premium Rouge and Economy cabins.  Flights will depart Toronto on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday and return Thursday, Saturday and Monday from Prague, with the service operating until September 29, 2016. Flights are timed to optimize connectivity to and from Air Canada's Toronto-Pearson global hub.  All flights provide for Aeroplan accumulation and redemption and, for eligible customers, priority check-in, Maple Leaf Lounge access, priority boarding and other benefits.

The new Toronto-Prague service is part of Air Canada's ongoing international expansion. For this summer, Air Canada has started new international services between Toronto-London-Gatwick, and will launch other services between Toronto-Budapest, Toronto-Warsaw, Toronto-Glasgow, Toronto-Seoul, Montreal-Casablanca, Montreal-Lyon, Vancouver-Brisbane and Vancouver-Dublin. Last year, Air Canada launched new international services between Toronto-Delhi, Toronto-Amsterdam, Toronto-Dubai, Montreal-Venice, Montreal-Mexico City and Vancouver-Osaka.

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 2015 served more than 41 million customers.  Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 64 airports in Canada, 55 in the United States and 87 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 1,321 airports in 193 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.  For more information, please visit: www.aircanada.com, follow @AirCanada on Twitter and join Air Canada on Facebook.

About Air Canada Rouge

Air Canada Rouge is Air Canada's leisure airline and offers competitively-priced travel to 70 exciting leisure destinations on 99 routes in Europe, Mexico, the U.S., the Caribbean, Asia, South America, Africa and Canada. As a wholly-owned subsidiary, Air Canada Rouge is backed by Air Canada's reputation for safety and reliability. For more information, visit www.flyrouge.com or to book a flight visit www.aircanada.com. Visit Air Canada Rouge on Facebook at www.facebook.com/aircanadarouge.

SOURCE Air Canada