Air Canada Reconfigures Passenger Cabins to Transport Supplies

Air Canada is reconfiguring the cabins of three of its Boeing 777-300ER aircraft to give them additional cargo capacity to transport vital supplies and necessary cargo amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. The first aircraft conversion is complete and is now in service, with the second and third aircraft to be completed shortly.

"Bringing critical medical and other vital suppliesrapidly to Canada and helping distribute them across the country is imperativeto combating the COVID-19 crisis. The transformation of the Boeing 777-300ERs,our largest international wide-body aircraft, doubles the capacity of eachflight and will enable more goods to move more quickly," said Tim Strauss,Vice President – Cargo at Air Canada.

The three Boeing 777-300ER aircraft are being converted byAvianor, an aircraft maintenance and cabin integration specialist, at itsMontreal-Mirabel facility. Avianor developed a specific engineering solution toremove 422 passenger seats and designate cargo loading zones for light weightboxes containing medical equipment and restrained with cargo nets. This modificationhas been developed, produced and implemented within six days. All operationshave been certified and approved by Transport Canada.

Through its cargo division, Air Canada has been usingmainline aircraft that would otherwise be parked to operate cargo-only flights.The aircraft on these flights carry no passengers but move in their baggageholds time-sensitive shipments, including urgent medical supplies, and goods tosupport the global economy.

Air Canada has operated 40 all-cargo flights since March 22and plans to operate up to 20 all-cargo flights per week using a combination ofthe three newly converted Boeing 777s, Boeing 787s and Boeing 777s, in additionto current scheduled flights to London, Paris, Frankfurt, Hong Kong.  Air Canada Cargo has been working with itssupply chain partners and shippers to transport medical supplies from Asia andEurope to Canada and will continue exploring additional opportunities as neededin all regions of the globe.