Air Canada Invests in Improved Premium Product on Air Canada rouge

• Introduction of new spacious Business Class seats on Air Canada rouge A319 aircraft
• More overhead stowage space throughout Airbus A319 aircraft
• Upgrades to the in-flight entertainment system across the Air Canada rouge fleet

MONTREAL, May 26, 2015 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada today announced a number of product upgrades to benefit customers on its leisure airline, Air Canada rouge. 

The premium cabin in Air Canada rouge's fleet of 20 Airbus A319 aircraft will be converted by mid-June 2015 from its current 3x3 seating configuration with a blocked middle seat to two side-by-side Business Class seats in a 2x2 configuration. This new seating provides customers more personal space and generous legroom as well as full power charging capacity with a 110-volt power plug and a high-powered USB port at every seat. Additional customer convenience features include a centre console and pop-out cocktail tray between the two seats and a coat hook at every seat.

"Air Canada has listened to its customers and is pleased to announce product investments in the Air Canada rouge fleet including new Business Class seats on all Airbus A319 aircraft," said Benjamin Smith, President, Passenger Airlines at Air Canada. "The new business class seating on rouge Airbus A319 aircraft provides our premium leisure customers with more space and comfort and, together with complimentary bar and meal service, is in line with our award winning Air Canada Business Class. We continue to strategically deploy Air Canada rouge on routes with high leisure travel demand as part of our strategy for sustainable, profitable growth. These product improvements, including Business Class seating offering the same or more space than equivalent seating on widebody rouge Boeing 767 aircraft, provides customers with a market leading premium leisure product in North America."

All Air Canada rouge flights provide for Aeroplan accumulation and redemption and, for eligible customers, priority check-in, Maple Leaf Lounge access, priority boarding and other benefits.

Air Canada rouge will also increase carry-on space throughout its Airbus A319 fleet by 30 per cent with the installation of new overhead bin doors – dubbed "pillow doors" because of their curved shape – which allow carry-on items to be stowed more efficiently. The installation takes place this summer.

In addition to the upgrades on its Airbus A319 aircraft, Air Canada rouge is also enhancing its in-flight entertainment system on all Airbus A319 and Boeing 767 aircraft. Air Canada rouge is one of the first airlines in North America to offer a streaming in-flight entertainment system. This system, called player, is available complimentary to customers that have downloaded the free app onto their own laptops or mobile Apple^® and Android^® devices. Air Canada rouge also provides an Apple iPad^® rental program onboard that is now renting out lightweight iPad Air 2^® tablets that have been upgraded to feature dozens of the latest Hollywood new releases and popular iPad games for one and two players. iPad rentals are complimentary in the Premium rouge cabin.   

Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving more than 190 destinations on five continents.  Canada's flag carrier is among the 20 largest airlines in the world and in 2014 served more than 38 million customers.  Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 64 Canadian cities, 52 destinations in the United States and 78 cities in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and South America. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation network serving 1,321 airports in 193 countries.  Air Canada is the only international network carrier in North America to receive a Four-Star ranking according to independent U.K. research firm Skytrax that ranked Air Canada in a worldwide survey of more than 18 million airline passengers as Best Airline in North America in 2014 for the fifth consecutive year.  For more information, please visit: www.aircanada.com follow @AirCanada on Twitter and join Air Canada on Facebook.

Air Canada rouge is Air Canada's leisure airline. Together with Air Canada Vacations, Air Canada rouge offers competitively-priced travel to 50 exciting leisure destinations on 68 routes in Europe, Mexico, the U.S., the Caribbean, Asia, South America and Canada.

Air Canada rouge began operating July 1, 2013 with a start-up fleet of two Airbus 319 aircraft and two Boeing 767-300ER aircraft. Air Canada rouge currently operates a total of 31 aircraft including 20 Airbus 319 and 11 Boeing 767-300ER aircraft.

As a wholly-owned subsidiary, Air Canada rouge is backed by Air Canada's 77-year reputation for safety and reliability and Air Canada Vacations' 30-plus year history of vacation travel excellence. For more information, visit www.flyrouge.com or to book a flight visit www.aircanada.com. Visit Air Canada rouge on Facebook at www.facebook.com/aircanadarouge.

SOURCE Air Canada