Air Canada's Boeing 737-8 Fleet Bound for Rouge

‍DALLAS — On Tuesday, December 17, 2024, Air Canada (AC) announced during an Investor Day presentation that by 2028, it aims to transfer all of its Boeing 737-8 aircraft to its low-cost subsidiary, Air Canada Rouge (RV). 

According to airlinegeeks.com, the move is part of a fleet restructuring program for AC's Boeing jets, which includes the 12 aircraft that AC has on order due to start flying with the airline next year. 

Air Canada's executive vice president for revenue and network planning, Mark Galardo, said this was a move to “better position the brand for our customers in the leisure segment.”

By moving down the Boeing 737 MAX fleet to RV, AC “will be able to reduce our variable CASM [Cost per Available Seat Mile] significantly, increase our seat count, and offer a much improved competitive tool to address the leisure market.”

For Leisure in the Americas

Mr. Galardo also said there will be increased “flexibility to operate a Vancouver base with the airplane, improving our competitiveness and range ability in this market and in Western Canada at large.”

Ai Canada Rouge currently operates an aging fleet of Airbus A320 family aircraft, which the airline plans to retire soon and replace with one aircraft type. 

For AC, the Boeing 737-8 flies on several routes, some across the Atlantic. This means that these routes will be served by a new aircraft type after 2028.

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