Air Canada Announces Toronto-Dubai Service with 787-9s

Air Canada has decided to launch non-stop service between Toronto and Dubai, beginning on November 3, 2015.

The airline will operate the route three times a week, using Boeing 787 Dreamliners. Dubai will be the seventh new international destination announced by Air Canada within the past year.

C-GHPQ, a Boeing 787-8, was the first Boeing 787 to be delivered to Air Canada, the aircraft landing at Toronto Pearson International Airport on May 18, 2014. Air Canada became the second North American airline to put Boeing 787s into operation

Each week, Air Canada will operate two of the three round-trips with Boeing 787-9 aircraft and the other round-trip with a 787-8.

“The three-times-weekly Dubai service will be Air Canada’s first non-stop flight to the UAE at a time when air travel between North America and the region is growing, including more international connecting traffic over our Toronto global hub,” says Calin Rovinescu, president and chief executive officer at Air Canada.

Air Canada currently serves the Arabian Gulf region primarily through an extensive joint venture with its transatlantic JV and Star Alliance partner Lufthansa over Frankfurt and Munich.

In addition, according to Air Canada, the new route will build on its existing codeshare relationship with Etihad Airways, with which it codeshares on three flights a week between Toronto and Abu Dhabi, also in the United Arab Emirates.

As of late 2014, Air Canada had ordered 15 Boeing 787-8s and 22 Boeing 787-9s. This computer graphic image shows one of its 787-8s

Tickets for Air Canada’s Toronto-Dubai service will be available for purchase from December 16.

Air Canada’s schedule for its Toronto-Dubai flights calls for flight AC056 to leave Toronto Pearson International Airport (IATA code YYZ) at 8:55 p.m. on  Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from November 3 and to reach Dubai International Airport (DXB) at 6:40 p.m. the following day, local time.

In the other direction, flight AC057 is timed to depart DXB at 11:55 p.m. on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays from November 4 and to land at YYZ at 5:00 a.m. the next morning, local time.

Since Dubai is nine time zones ahead of Toronto, Air Canada’s flight timings for its flights indicate its eastbound flight from Toronto to Dubai will have a 12 hour 40 minutes block time and its westbound flight from Dubai to Toronto will have a 14 hour 5 minute block time.

This is what the Premium Economy cabin in Air Canada’s Boeing 787-8s looks like

Air Canada will operate its Thursday and Saturday outbound flights on the route with Boeing 787-9s and its Tuesday outbound flights with Boeing 787-8s.

Consequently, Air Canada will operate its Wednesday return flights from Dubai with Boeing 787-8s and its Friday and Sunday return flights with Boeing 787-9s.

Since December 2013, Air Canada has announced new international service to Delhi, Amsterdam, Rio de Janeiro, Osaka, Tokyo Haneda and Panama City.

Including Dubai, Air Canada now serves or has announced service to a total of 66 international destinations on five continents from its Toronto global hub.