Air Canada replaces Boeing 787s with Airbus A321XLRs on some routes, redeploying Dreamliners to new long-haul destinations

Air Canada will pull the Boeing 787 from 11 routes in the coming months: Calgary–London, Ottawa–London, Montreal–Toulouse, Montreal–Porto, Montreal–Copenhagen, Montreal–Paris, Montreal–Edinburgh, Montreal–Casablanca, Montreal–Berlin, Toronto–Zurich and Toronto–Venice. Six of those services will see the Airbus A321XLR on some or all frequencies, while some routes will instead see the Boeing 777 or Airbus A330. The changes coincide with the airline's planned expansion for the 2026/2027 winter season and the 2027 summer season, and the XLRs were also ordered to further optimize its transatlantic network.

The A321XLR carries just 182 seats, with 14 business class seats and no premium economy cabin, against 255 seats and 20 business class seats on the 787-8 and 298 seats and 30 business class seats on the 787-9, both of which also have a 21-seat premium economy cabin. The 787 was previously the long-range aircraft with the lowest operating costs in Air Canada's fleet, but that is now the A321XLR. Air Canada now operates five A321XLRs, with 25 more on the way; the first was delivered in April 2026, and the airline has ordered 30 in total. The freed-up 787s will move to routes where their size, range and fuel efficiency are valuable: Toronto–Barcelona from December, alongside new Vancouver–Sapporo services, with Vancouver–Guangzhou and Montreal–Dubrovnik launching in May 2027, the 787 on Montreal–Tel Aviv and Toronto–Prague, and Toronto–Stockholm from June. Apart from Barcelona, all of these routes are too long for the A321XLR to operate.

Air Canada's widebody fleet currently stands at 20 Airbus A330-300s, six Boeing 777-200LRs, 19 Boeing 777-300ERs, eight 787-8s and 32 787-9s, making the 40-strong Dreamliner fleet its largest. The 787-10, the first of which is already being tested by Boeing, is set to start arriving later in 2026; the carrier has 14 on firm order with 12 options, to be delivered until 2030, and with 332 seats it will have a higher capacity than any other widebody except the 777-300ER. Air Canada also holds eight orders for the Airbus A350-1000, with options for eight more, set to start arriving in 2030. Separately, the airline will discontinue its nonstop Vancouver–Singapore route in January 2027, its longest route, with current fuel prices among the factors behind the cut; oil prices are nearly $90 per barrel, according to the source.