Air Canada is in talks with Airbus, Boeing, Bombardier and leasing companies and hopes to announce orders "in the near future" for a combination of aircraft. They will replace its 16 McDonnell Douglas DC-9-30s and the 44 Boeing 737-200s in service with subsidiary Canadian Airlines, as well as the 10 BAe 146s and 30 Fokker F28s operated by its regional divisions.
President Robert Milton says the airline is interested in 100-120 seaters such as the Airbus A318 and A319, Boeing 717 and 737, as well as 50-, 70- and 90-seat versions of Bombardier's CRJ regional jet. Air Canada is also interested in Bombardier's 70-seat Dash 8 Q400 high speed turboprop, "but not at the price they're proposing", says Milton.
Orders for "some combination" of the aircraft under study are expected to be placed soon, with deliveries phased over "a number of years", he says.
Air Canada and its subsidiary Canadian already have 82 A319/A320s in service. The flag-carrier has just committed to an additional 32 A320 family aircraft from Airbus and leasing companies International Lease Finance and GE Capital Aviation Services. As a result, Milton says Air Canada is looking at the A318 "with the awareness we can easily add A319s". Availability of Airbus aircraft is so constrained that the airline would probably need a mix of A318s and A319s "to get enough aircraft", he says.
Milton says Air Canada is looking at Boeing's 717-100 "shrink" version as well as the standard-body 717-100 and the 737-600.
Source: Flight International
