was, from 1987 until
2001 ,
Canada 's second largest
Airline after
Air Canada , carrying more than 11.9 million passengers to over 160 destinations in 17 countries on five continents at its height in 1996. Canadian Airlines served 105 destinations in Canada, more than any other airline.
Canadian Airlines was headquartered in
Calgary ,
Alberta and had
Revenue of approximately $3 billion at the end of
1999 . The airline and its planes were acquired by
Air Canada in 2001.
Canadian Airlines International Ltd., which was the principal subsidiary of Canadian Airlines Corporation (formerly PWA Corporation), was the descendant of five predecessor airlines. On
March 27 ,
1987 ,
Canadian Pacific Airlines ,
Eastern Provincial Airways ,
Nordair and
Pacific Western Airlines amalgamated to form the new airline.
PWA Corporation acquired
Wardair in 1989, establishing Canadian as an important player in the global industry with the addition of new routes. Its major hubs were at
Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport ,
Toronto Pearson International Airport ,
Vancouver International Airport , and
Calgary International Airport .
Canadian Airlines streamlined its operations and went through the financial restructuring of over $700 million in debt, after the 1991 airline industry slump.
On
November 1 1996 ,
Kevin Benson , then president and CEO, unveiled a restructuring strategy to improve the profitability of Canadian Airlines. The operational restructuring plan was supposed to be phased in over a four year period, addressing the main issues of cost control, revenue growth, capitalization and fleet renewal. It was also one of the founding members of the
Oneworld Airline Alliance s, along with
American Airlines and
British Airways . The plan started off well but with the
Asian economic downturn
1998 , air traffic decreased and Canadian was suffering on what was previously its most profitable route.
was the largest frequent flyer program in Canada with more than 60 airline, hotel, car rental, and financial partners worldwide. The program had more than three million members.
In its last few years of operation, Canadian Airlines extended its international route network in
Asia , with the most recent expansion of service to
Malaysia and the
Philippines , which gave it eight destinations in Asia. At that time Canadian Airlines had the distinction of flying to more places in Asia, more often, than any other Canadian carrier.
Canadian Airlines' core business strategy focused on building its
Vancouver hub into the leading gateway between North America and Asia. It leveraged its
Codesharing agreement with
American Airlines in order to help capture a greater share of U.S.-Asia traffic flows.
After continued poor performance, Canadian Airlines was acquired by
Air Canada in 2000. Numerous other proposals for survival had been considered and rejected, including a competing bid led by
American Airlines to purchase Canadian Airlines. American Airlines had already owned a 25% stake in Canadian Airlines, the maximum allowed under regulations. Then-American CEO
Donald J. Carty , who had formerly headed Canadian predecessor
Canadian Pacific Airlines and
Air Canada , planned to acquire a controlling interest in the new Air Canada, with the purpose of moving it from the
Star Alliance to
Oneworld . American has since sold its shares in Air Canada, after unsuccessfully lobbying Canadian federal government to ease foreign ownership restrictions on Canadian airlines.
The most famous and well-known livery of Canadian used four colours: light grey, dark grey, navy blue, and red. The lower half of the aircraft's body was navy blue, topped with light grey and red borders. The tail was two-thirds blue, with the remaining third taken up by a light grey colour. Over the light grey were five dark grey lines, representing the five continents served by the carrier. Over these lines was a thick, bright red chevron ">". This character was a clever alternative to a true bilingual name on the fuselage (Canadian/Canadien).
Its last livery with a
Canada Goose painted at the tail of the aircraft is known as the "Proud Wings" livery. However, it came late enough that most of the fleet still retained the existing chevron livery by the time of the merger.
Also, during the acquisition by Air Canada, part of the "Proud Wings" livery was completely replaced with a white body (with the exception of the word Canadi>n) and an Air Canada tail (with a red maple leaf against a dark green background.)
At the time of its acquisition by
Air Canada , it operated a fleet of 163 aircraft. The following is a list of aircraft belonging to both :
Canadian Airlines offerred three classes:
- First Class (F)
- Business Class (J)
- Canadian Class (Y)
- --- referred to as Economy Class on turbo prop aircraft
First Class was available on flights using wide body jets and Business Classes on flights not using regional jets or turbo prop aircraft.
Food from flights within
Canada were provided by
LSG Sky Chefs and all other flights by local contractors. Sky Chefs supplied the best catering service throughout the airline catering business worldwide and in London England (LHR) was in the complete control of Barry Perrin until he was transferred to the USA (ORD) where he continued his excellent performance for CAI and several other airlines
Maintenance was provided by in-house operations during the existence of the airlines. Aircraft would be services by other airlines at airports without CA operations.
Maintenance was provided by in-house operations during the existence of the airlines. Aircraft would be serviced by other airlines at airports without CA operations.
Most international and medium haul flight provided both video and audio entertainment. Short haul flights provided audio entertainment only.
Newspapers provided in-flight on most aircraft:
Canadian lounges were called ''Empress Lounge'' and were located at several airports in
Canada and abroad:
Canadian Airlines' domestic network was broken down into five divisions:
- , which served 69 destinations in British Columbia , Alberta , Saskatchewan , Manitoba , the Northwest Territories , Ontario , and the United States . Canadian Regional was 100 percent owned by Canadian Airlines.
- which served 27 destinations in Manitoba, Northwestern Ontario , and the Northwest Territories. Calm Air was 45 percent owned by Canadian Regional and continues to operate under separate management.
- served Ottawa , Toronto , Labrador , and 26 destinations throughout Quebec . Inter-Canadien was 100 percent owned by Canadian Regional.
- , a regional partner of Canadian Airlines, served 16 destinations throughout the Atlantic Provinces , Quebec, Ontario, and the United States.
- was a division of Canadian Airlines created to serve the Northern Regions . Canadian North had a network of 10 destinations that expanded from its southern bases of Edmonton and Winnipeg . Canadian North also had a commercial agreement with Aklak Air , an Inuit-owned and operated airline in the Northwest Territories. Canadian North was sold in 1998 to Norterra and continues to operate as an independent airline.
operated the largest tour operator in
Canada called
Canadian Holidays and the '''Canadian Getaways''' program. The operator flew to destinations which included:
- Florida
- Bahamas
- Barbados
- Bermuda
- Mexico
- Cuba
- Dominican Republic
- St. Kitts
- Jamaica
- Grand Cayman
- Costa Rica
- Hawaii
- Arizona
- California
- Nevada
- Puerto Rico
- Tortola
provided general air cargo services in
Canada and the
United States .
Services included:
- Priority Service
- Express Overnight Door-to-Door
- General Air Cargo
In 1994, the Canadian Children's show .
No fatalities occurred during the short existence of . There were only two major incidents:
- September 1997 - B767 experienced an engine fire
- October 1995 - DC10 experienced an engine fire
