Air Canada and United Airlines have today announced a joint business agreement for the U.S. and Canada transborder market. Building on their long-term alliance, the expanded relationship will result in more flight options and better schedules between the two countries.
On Friday (July 22, 2022), Air Canada announced an expansion of their long-standing alliance with United Airlines with the signing of a new joint business agreement for the transborder market between Canada and the U.S. Customers will now be able to seamlessly connect to 38 codeshare destinations in the U.S. and to eight of the most popular cities in Canada, while enjoying the benefits of United’s MileagePlus® and Air Canada’s Aeroplan loyalty programs. When searching for flights between the U.S. and Canada on both companies apps and websites, customers will now find more flight options and more convenient schedules.
In Friday’s announcement, Air Canada’s SVP – Network Planning and Revenue Management, Mark Galardo, said,
“United is a world-class airline and we are pleased to significantly expand our well-established partnership to further enhance the customer journey between Canada and the U.S. by offering more choice, greater convenience and an improved airport experience. This agreement marks a new phase in our evolving relationship that will speed the recovery from the pandemic and strengthen both carriers. It will also enable us to optimize our hubs and schedules and to broaden our global network connectivity to maintain our leadership in the market.”
Also commenting on the expanded partnership, United Airlines’ SVP – Global Network Planning and Alliances, Patrick Quayle, said,
“With this new agreement, we are further strengthening our long-standing partnership with Air Canada. As international travel continues to recover, this expanded partnership will provide an enhanced experience for all transborder travel.”
In 2019, the U.S. – Canada transborder market was the second largest international passenger air transportation market in the world, and the largest international market for both Canada and the U.S. by seats. Subject to regulatory and antitrust requirements, the expanded partnership will allow both airlines to coordinate their networks and schedules, offer enhanced codeshare on transborder flights, mutually sell seats on each other’s transborder flights, share revenue on flights between hub markets, align customer policies, co-locate at airports where possible, and provide enhanced value to each carriers’ frequent flyer programs.
United Airlines and Air Canada are both founding members of Star Alliance and part of a transatlantic joint business agreement with the Lufthansa Group.
United Airlines’ shared purpose is “Connecting People. Uniting the World.” In 2019, United and United Express® carriers operated over 1.7 million flights carrying over 162 million guests. United Airlines operates the most comprehensive network among North American carriers with mainland U.S. hubs in Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, New York/Newark, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. Shares in the company’s parent, United Airlines Holdings, Inc., are publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol ‘UAL.’
Air Canada is Canada’s largest domestic and international airline. The Canadian flag carrier is a founding member of the Star Alliance and the only international network carrier in North America to receive a Four-Star ranking from Skytrax. Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service to 51 airports in Canada, 51 in the U.S. and 86 internationally. Through the carrier’s Aeroplan loyalty program, customers can earn and redeem points on the world’s largest airline partner network of 45 airlines. Air Canada Cargo offers air freight lift and connectivity to hundreds of destinations across six continents with a dedicated fleet of 767-300 Freighters and passenger aircraft belly hold capacity. Additionally, the airline has committed to a net zero emissions goal from all global operations by 2050.
Source(s): Air Canada / CNW Telbec, United Airlines