Air Canada will open six international city pairs in summer 2027 as part of a wider expansion spanning its Vancouver, Toronto and Montréal hubs, with new service to Guangzhou, Oslo, Shannon, Nice, Basel and Dubrovnik.
The airline’s summer 2027 plan also restores a daytime Toronto-London flight, increases Toronto-Shanghai to daily and converts several Latin American and leisure routes to year-round operation.
Air Canada expects to offer more than 125 international routes and as many as 169,000 weekly seats from Canada to over 85 destinations outside the United States. Available seat miles across its Atlantic, Pacific, Mexico, Caribbean and Latin American networks are set to increase by more than 8% from summer 2026.
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Guangzhou Returns to Air Canada’s Network
Vancouver (YVR) will gain a year-round link to Guangzhou (CAN) from May 4, subject to government approval. Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights will operate three times weekly with Signature Class, Premium Economy and Economy cabins.
AC77 will leave YVR at 12:35 a.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, reaching Guangzhou at 5 a.m. the following day. The return, AC76, will depart CAN at 9:45 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and arrive in Vancouver at 6:30 a.m.
Guangzhou becomes Air Canada’s third mainland Chinese destination alongside Beijing and Shanghai. The carrier plans up to 24 weekly frequencies between Canada and those three cities, adding capacity into the Pearl River Delta while using YVR to distribute connecting traffic across North America.
The route is the only new service in the announcement assigned to Vancouver and the only one scheduled throughout the year from launch. Its use of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner reflects the sector’s length and the importance of both passenger and belly-cargo demand.
A321XLR Opens Oslo, Shannon and Basel
Three of the new routes will use the Airbus A321XLR, giving Air Canada a lower-capacity long-range aircraft for markets that do not initially require a widebody.
The airline’s 182-seat A321XLR configuration has 14 lie-flat Signature Class seats and 168 Economy seats. Its range of up to 4,700 nautical miles makes it suitable for thinner transatlantic routes while retaining a long-haul premium cabin.
Toronto Pearson (YYZ) to Oslo (OSL) will operate four times weekly from June 2 through October 10, also subject to government approval. AC940 will depart Toronto at 9:30 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. The return will leave Oslo at 12:30 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays.
Oslo adds a third Scandinavian destination to Air Canada’s network, joining Stockholm and Copenhagen. The schedule is built around overnight eastbound flying and afternoon arrivals at YYZ, allowing onward connections throughout Canada and the United States.
Toronto-Shannon (SNN) will run three times weekly from June 10 through October 2. AC968 will leave YYZ at 9:30 p.m. on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, while AC969 will return the following mornings from Ireland on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Shannon will be Air Canada’s second Irish destination after Dublin.
Montréal (YUL) to Basel (BSL) will operate four times weekly from June 16 through October 23, again with the A321XLR. Departures from Montréal are scheduled for Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, with return flights operating on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays.
Basel gives Air Canada service to Switzerland’s three principal international business centers alongside Geneva and Zurich. It also adds direct access to the pharmaceutical and life-sciences cluster around the tri-national Basel region without committing widebody capacity.
Widebodies Head to Nice and Dubrovnik
Air Canada will use an Airbus A330-300 for twice-weekly flights between Toronto and Nice (NCE) from June 16 through October 23. Wednesday and Saturday departures will complement the airline’s existing Montréal-Nice operation, producing a combined daily Air Canada schedule to the French Riviera on peak days.
AC964 is timed to leave Toronto at 7:30 p.m. and arrive at 9:40 a.m. the next day. The return, AC965, will depart Nice at 11:10 a.m. and reach Toronto at 2:30 p.m. The A330 provides Signature Class, Premium Economy and Economy, giving the leisure-led route more capacity than the new A321XLR sectors.
Montréal-Dubrovnik (DBV) will begin May 11 and operate three times weekly through October 23 with Boeing 787 Dreamliners. AC950 will leave YUL on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, returning as AC951 on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.
Dubrovnik is the earliest of the six new city pairs to start and has the longest planned summer operating window. The widebody assignment points to Air Canada’s expectations for premium leisure traffic as well as connecting demand from across North America.
Heathrow Day Flight Returns
The expansion extends beyond new destinations. Air Canada will reinstate its Toronto-London Heathrow (LHR) daytime flight on May 1, taking the market to five daily frequencies.
AC862 will depart Toronto at 8:30 a.m. and arrive in London at 9 p.m. The westbound AC863 leaves Heathrow at 11:05 a.m. and reaches Toronto at 2:45 p.m. Both flights are scheduled year-round with the A321XLR.
The daytime eastbound flight avoids an overnight sector and broadens Air Canada’s schedule in one of its largest long-haul markets. It also demonstrates how the A321XLR can supplement widebodies with a differently timed frequency rather than only opening new destinations.
Elsewhere at Toronto, Shanghai (PVG) will increase to daily service. The carrier’s new Toronto-Guatemala City (GUA) route, launching in December 2026, will remain in the schedule year-round, with a weekly Airbus A330-300 flight from May 6.
From Montréal, services to Tenerife (TFS), Lima (LIM) and Guatemala City will also continue through the summer instead of remaining winter-seasonal. The Tenerife route uses the A321XLR, extending the aircraft’s role beyond conventional North Atlantic business markets.
Additional growth is likely as Air Canada introduces the Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner. The airline has said its Toronto A321XLR base will open later in 2026 and that the first Toronto-based 787-10 will arrive around the same period. Air Canada’s firm order covers 18 of the largest Dreamliner variant, with options for 12 more.
Bottom Line
The summer 2027 program shows Air Canada dividing international growth between two distinct fleet tools. The Airbus A321XLR is opening routes where frequency, premium seating and manageable capacity matter more than widebody scale, while the A330 and 787 remain assigned to markets with stronger volume, cargo or premium-leisure potential. Oslo, Shannon and Basel are precisely the type of destinations the XLR was acquired to make viable.
The network plan also puts each hub to a different use. Vancouver receives a strategic year-round China link, Montréal adds two European destinations and extends southern routes beyond winter, while Toronto absorbs the largest package of new flying and frequency growth. The return of a fifth Heathrow flight and daily Shanghai service matters as much as the new dots because both deepen schedule utility in major long-haul markets.
The next development to watch is the Boeing 787-10 deployment plan. None of the newly announced routes has been assigned the type, but its arrival will release capacity and create further room for growth from Toronto. Air Canada has already signaled that more route announcements will follow as the 787-10 fleet enters service.
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