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Grounding of 737 Max - Effect on AC incl OMNI 767 lease

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Old Mar 12, 2019, 11:26 am
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Latest updates from aircanada.com
Originally Posted by https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/home/book/travel-news-and-updates/2019/737-airspace-closure.html
If you currently have a reservation for a flight between now and September 02, 2019 that was scheduled to be operated by a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, we've implemented a policy that makes it possible for you to make voluntary changes to your itinerary within three (3) weeks of your original travel dates.
Read below for more details.

Air Canada Timetable Effective June 27, 2019 to September 29, 2019 (AC's link: https://services.aircanada.com/porta...metable-en.pdf)
Air Canada Timetable Effective June 20, 2019 to September 22, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective June 13, 2019 to September 15, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective June 6, 2019 to September 8, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective May 30, 2019 to September 1, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective May 23, 2019 to August 25, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective May 16, 2019 to August 18, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective May 9, 2019 to August 11, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective May 2, 2019 to August 4, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective April 25, 2019 to July 28, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective April 18, 2019 to July 21, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective April 11, 2019 to July 14, 2019
Air Canada Timetable Effective March 28, 2019 to June 30, 2019



May 29, 2019
If you are travelling within the next 72 hours, call:

1-833-354-5963

If you booked through a Travel Agency, please call them for immediate assistance
In compliance with Transport Canada's safety notice closing Canadian airspace to Boeing 737 MAX aircraft operations, Air Canada has grounded its 24 737 MAX aircraft until further notice.Air Canada is now updating its May, June and July schedule to further optimize its fleet and re-accommodate customers. Because the timeline for the return to service of the 737 Max is unknown, for planning purposes and to provide customers certainty for booking and travel, Air Canada is removing all 737 MAX aircraft from its schedule until at least September 02, 2019. A summary of schedule changes for April is posted below in the following question and answer: "What is Air Canada doing to reschedule customers?". Additional schedule changes will be posted as warranted.
  • Air Canada's cancellation and rebooking policies are in place with full fee waiver for affected customers.
  • We are working to rebook impacted customers as soon as possible.
  • Given the magnitude of our 737 MAX operations which on average carry nine to twelve thousand customers per day, customers can expect delays in rebooking and in reaching Air Canada Call Centres.
  • If you are travelling within the next 72 hours, please call the number at the top of this page.
  • If you booked through a Travel Agent, you may contact them directly for assistance.
We appreciate our customers' patience as we work to get everyone on their way.

If you'd like to make other plansIf you currently have a reservation for a flight between now and September 02, 2019 that was scheduled to be operated by a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, we've implemented a policy that makes it possible for you to make voluntary changes to your itinerary within three (3) weeks of your original travel dates.If you are impacted by this policy, you may contact Air Canada Reservations (1-888-247-2262). If you are travelling in the next 72 hours, please call Air Canada Reservations number at the top of this notice. If you purchased your ticket with AeroplanExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines., or Air Canada Vacations or your travel agent, please contact them directly.

****

March 19, 2019

UPDATED - INFORMATION ON IMPACTED ROUTES


**********

UPDATED - Air Canada Responds to Transport Canada's Closure of Canadian Airspace to the Boeing 737 MAX Aircraft

https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/...e-closure.html

March 19, 2019

If you are travelling within the next 72 hours, call:

1-833-354-5963

If you booked through a Travel Agency, please call them for immediate assistance

In compliance with Transport Canada’s safety notice closing Canadian airspace to Boeing 737 MAX aircraft operations, Air Canada has grounded its 24 737 MAX aircraft until further notice.

Air Canada is now updating its April and May schedule to further optimize its fleet and re-accommodate customers. Because the timeline for the return to service of the 737 Max is unknown, for planning purposes and to provide customers certainty for booking and travel, Air Canada is removing all 737 MAX aircraft from its schedule until at least July 1, 2019. A summary of schedule changes for April is posted below in the following question and answer: “What is Air Canada doing to reschedule customers?”. Additional schedule changes will be posted as warranted.
  • Air Canada's cancellation and rebooking policies are in place with full fee waiver for affected customers.
  • We are working to rebook impacted customers as soon as possible.
  • Given the magnitude of our 737 MAX operations which on average carry nine to twelve thousand customers per day, customers can expect delays in rebooking and in reaching Air Canada Call Centres.
  • If you are travelling within the next 72 hours, please call the number at the top of this page.
  • If you booked through a Travel Agent, you may contact them directly for assistance.
We appreciate our customers' patience as we work to get everyone on their way.

If you'd like to make other plans

If you currently have a reservation for a flight that was scheduled to be operated by a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, we've implemented a policy that makes it possible for you to make voluntary changes to your itinerary within three (3) weeks of your original travel dates.

If you are impacted by this policy, you may contact Air Canada Reservations (1-888-247-2262). If you are travelling in the next 72 hours, please call Air Canada Reservations number at the top of this notice.

If you purchased your ticket with Aeroplan, or Air Canada Vacations or your travel agent, please contact them directly.


*********
March 13, 2019

Air Canada confirmed today that it will comply immediately with Transport Canada's safety notice closing Canadian airspace to Boeing 737 MAX aircraft operations until further notice.

Air Canada's cancellation and rebooking policies are in place with full fee waiver for affected customers. We are working to rebook impacted customers as soon as possible. Given the magnitude of our 737 MAX operations which on average carry nine to twelve thousand customers per day, customers can expect delays in rebooking and in reaching Air Canada Call Centres. Priority will be given to customers travelling within the next 72 hours. We appreciate our customers' patience.

If you'd like to know what type of aircraft you are flying on, simply retrieve your booking from the My Bookings tab, then click on the 'Details' link in the Flight Details section. We also advise you to check the status of your flight before heading to the airport.

We fully support Transport Canada's decision and will continue to work with them towards a resolution of this situation as soon as possible.

Alternate Travel Plans
If you currently have a reservation for a flight operated by a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, we've implemented a policy that makes it possible for you to make voluntary changes to your itinerary within three (3) weeks of your original travel dates.

If you are impacted by this policy, you may contact Air Canada Reservations (1-888-247-2262).

If you purchased your ticket with AeroplanExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines., or Air Canada Vacations or your Travel agent, please contact them directly Some questions you may have are below with our answers, but if you can't find what you need, contact us at 1-888-247-2262, or reach out to us on on FacebookExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines. or TwitterExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines..

How many Boeing 737 MAX aircraft does Air Canada have?
Air Canada has a fleet of 24 Boeing 737 MAX-8 aircraft, which have been in operation since 2017. We have a total fleet of 400 aircraft (including 24 737MAX), comprising Air Canada mainline, Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Express aircraft.

Where do the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft fly to?
These aircraft operate flights across North America, to Mexico, the Caribbean, Hawaii, as well as from Atlantic Canada to London Heathrow.

How many Boeing 737 MAX flights are there each day, and how many passengers are affected?
We typically operate approximately 75 Boeing 737 MAX flights daily out of a total schedule of approximately 1,600 daily flights system-wide, representing less than six percent of our total flying.

We have a total fleet of 400 aircraft (including 24 Boeing 737 MAX), comprising Air Canada mainline, Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Express aircraft.

What is Air Canada doing to reschedule customers?
We are making adjustments to our schedule to minimize the disruption to customers as much as possible, by optimizing the deployment of the rest of our fleet and looking at alternative options, including accommodating customers on other airlines.

As an example of some of our adjustments to Boeing 737 MAX flights cancelled, we have re-scheduled widebody aircraft to serve Hawaii starting today, March 13. Some flights will operate as scheduled with mainline or Air Canada Rouge aircraft, such as on Montreal-Martinique and Montreal-Guadeloupe. Other routes, notably Halifax-London and St. John's-London are cancelled in the short term, with customers being re-routed through our Montreal and Toronto hubs.

What should I do right now?
As changes are finalized in our flight schedule, customers whose flight times or flight numbers have changed can expect to receive an email detailing their updated itinerary. This information is also available in My Bookings on the Air Canada App.

If you are travelling soon, you can also contact us or your travel agent. Please understand that priority is being given to customers travelling within the next 72 hours.

We have also put in place a rebooking policy, space permitting, and without additional fees for affected customers. Given the magnitude of our Boeing 737 MAX operations, which on average carry nine to twelve thousand customers per day, customers can expect delays in rebooking and in reaching Air Canada's Call Centres.

Where can I go to for more information?
If you would like to know what type of aircraft you are flying on, simply retrieve your booking from the My Bookings tab, then click on the 'Details' link in the Flight Details section.

If you are travelling soon, you can contact us, reach out to our social media teams on FacebookExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines. or TwitterExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines., or call your travel agent.

We also advise you to check the status of your flight before going to the airport.

We thank all of our customers for their patience.

Will Air Canada cover my out-of-pocket expenses such as additional accommodation costs that I may incur as a result of these disruptions?
Our normal protocol for irregular events which are out of our control is in effect. We are regrettably unable to reimburse for such expenses.



****


MONTREAL, March 13, 2019 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada confirmed today that it will comply immediately with Transport Canada's safety notice closing Canadian airspace to Boeing 737 MAX aircraft operations until further notice.

Air Canada's cancellation and rebooking policies are in place with full fee waiver for affected customers. We are working to rebook impacted customers as soon as possible but given the magnitude of our 737 MAX operations which on average carry nine to twelve thousand customers per day, customers can expect delays in rebooking and in reaching Air Canada call centres and we appreciate our customers' patience.

Customers are further advised to check the status of their flight on aircanada.com prior to going to the airport.

We fully support this decision and will continue to work with Transport Canada towards resolution of this situation as soon as possible.


SOURCE Air Canada

For further information: Isabelle Arthur (Montréal), [email protected], 514 422-5788; Peter Fitzpatrick (Toronto), [email protected], 416 263-5576; Angela Mah (Vancouver), [email protected], 604 270-5741; Internet: aircanada.com

https://aircanada.mediaroom.com/2019...7-MAX-Aircraft




https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/...to-london.html

Originally Posted by ac.com
Information on Air Canada Halifax-London and St. John’s-London service

March 12, 2019

Due to the UK's Civil Aviation Authority banning all Boeing 737 Max aircraft operations in the U.K. Air Canada has cancelled the following flights:

AC 860 Halifax London-Heathrow on March 12
AC861 London-Halifax on March 13
AC822 St. John’s-London on March 13
AC823London-St. John’s on March 14

We are working to rebook impacted customers as soon as possible through our Montreal, Toronto and Ottawa hubs.

Affected customers may contact Air Canada Reservations to change their flights to another date free of charge.

As well, due to anticipated call volumes, customers can expect delays reaching Air Canada call centres, so we appreciate our customers’ patience.

Air Canada will provide updates as more information becomes available.
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Grounding of 737 Max - Effect on AC incl OMNI 767 lease

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Old Mar 13, 2019, 9:19 pm
  #301  
 
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Originally Posted by kjnangre
This is a map of all airborne 737 Max jets worldwide at the moment
Very soon it will be equal to the number of flying Concordes!
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 9:23 pm
  #302  
 
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Originally Posted by Jagboi
Very soon it will be equal to the number of flying Concordes!
Hmmm, interesting comparison!
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 9:24 pm
  #303  
 
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Originally Posted by Jagboi
Very soon it will be equal to the number of flying Concordes!
I think something similar was posted previously. I’m not sure of the status of wifi installation. AC should ferry any aircraft without wifi to the installer and try to get this work done while they’re not allowed to transport pax (provided installer has capacity to do the work).
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 9:53 pm
  #304  
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Mods - I updated the wiki and I'm posting here as some don't see or read the wiki. Feel free to move or delete either.

Good to see AC include a more detailed set of instructions and the Q & A format.
***

UPDATE

Air Canada Responds to Transport Canada’s Closure of Canadian Airspace to the Boeing 737 MAX Aircraft


March 13, 2019

Air Canada confirmed today that it will comply immediately with Transport Canada's safety notice closing Canadian airspace to Boeing 737 MAX aircraft operations until further notice.

Air Canada's cancellation and rebooking policies are in place with full fee waiver for affected customers. We are working to rebook impacted customers as soon as possible. Given the magnitude of our 737 MAX operations which on average carry nine to twelve thousand customers per day, customers can expect delays in rebooking and in reaching Air Canada Call Centres. Priority will be given to customers travelling within the next 72 hours. We appreciate our customers' patience.

If you'd like to know what type of aircraft you are flying on, simply retrieve your booking from the My Bookings tab, then click on the 'Details' link in the Flight Details section. We also advise you to check the status of your flight before heading to the airport.

We fully support Transport Canada's decision and will continue to work with them towards a resolution of this situation as soon as possible.

Alternate Travel Plans
If you currently have a reservation for a flight operated by a Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, we've implemented a policy that makes it possible for you to make voluntary changes to your itinerary within three (3) weeks of your original travel dates.

If you are impacted by this policy, you may contact Air Canada Reservations (1-888-247-2262).

If you purchased your ticket with AeroplanExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines., or Air Canada Vacations or your Travel agent, please contact them directly Some questions you may have are below with our answers, but if you can't find what you need, contact us at 1-888-247-2262, or reach out to us on on FacebookExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines. or TwitterExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines..

How many Boeing 737 MAX aircraft does Air Canada have?
Air Canada has a fleet of 24 Boeing 737 MAX-8 aircraft, which have been in operation since 2017. We have a total fleet of 400 aircraft (including 24 737MAX), comprising Air Canada mainline, Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Express aircraft.

Where do the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft fly to?
These aircraft operate flights across North America, to Mexico, the Caribbean, Hawaii, as well as from Atlantic Canada to London Heathrow.

How many Boeing 737 MAX flights are there each day, and how many passengers are affected?
We typically operate approximately 75 Boeing 737 MAX flights daily out of a total schedule of approximately 1,600 daily flights system-wide, representing less than six percent of our total flying.

We have a total fleet of 400 aircraft (including 24 Boeing 737 MAX), comprising Air Canada mainline, Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Express aircraft.

What is Air Canada doing to reschedule customers?
We are making adjustments to our schedule to minimize the disruption to customers as much as possible, by optimizing the deployment of the rest of our fleet and looking at alternative options, including accommodating customers on other airlines.

As an example of some of our adjustments to Boeing 737 MAX flights cancelled, we have re-scheduled widebody aircraft to serve Hawaii starting today, March 13. Some flights will operate as scheduled with mainline or Air Canada Rouge aircraft, such as on Montreal-Martinique and Montreal-Guadeloupe. Other routes, notably Halifax-London and St. John's-London are cancelled in the short term, with customers being re-routed through our Montreal and Toronto hubs.

What should I do right now?
As changes are finalized in our flight schedule, customers whose flight times or flight numbers have changed can expect to receive an email detailing their updated itinerary. This information is also available in My Bookings on the Air Canada App.

If you are travelling soon, you can also contact us or your travel agent. Please understand that priority is being given to customers travelling within the next 72 hours.

We have also put in place a rebooking policy, space permitting, and without additional fees for affected customers. Given the magnitude of our Boeing 737 MAX operations, which on average carry nine to twelve thousand customers per day, customers can expect delays in rebooking and in reaching Air Canada's Call Centres.

Where can I go to for more information?
If you would like to know what type of aircraft you are flying on, simply retrieve your booking from the My Bookings tab, then click on the 'Details' link in the Flight Details section.

If you are travelling soon, you can contact us, reach out to our social media teams on FacebookExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines. or TwitterExternal site which may not meet accessibility guidelines., or call your travel agent.

We also advise you to check the status of your flight before going to the airport.

We thank all of our customers for their patience.

Will Air Canada cover my out-of-pocket expenses such as additional accommodation costs that I may incur as a result of these disruptions?
Our normal protocol for irregular events which are out of our control is in effect. We are regrettably unable to reimburse for such expenses.


​​​​​​​https://www.aircanada.com/ca/en/aco/...e-closure.html
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 9:55 pm
  #305  
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Originally Posted by zoechow
Can anyone give advice for someone scheduled on a 737M8 flight with AC? (Mine is not until early July, Montreal to LAX.) The AC system still offers the same seating options, so the plane has not been changed, as far as I can see. How to prepare? I had paid for the extra legroom seats -- how to make sure I get something good in whatever is swapped in, if something is swapped in? Should I consider asking for some kind of change now, ahead of time?

Note: I know there is a lot of debate here about whether the plane should be grounded, but I think there are already threads for that; I was hoping for a discussion of practical advice, not more of that.
@zoechow

See post directly above or the wiki. In both is the link to the AC page. There are specific instructions. Not the timing in the sections "Alternate Travel Plans" and there may also be some helpful info in the Q&A
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 9:59 pm
  #306  
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So call centre wait times will now be 4 hours instead of 2?
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:00 pm
  #307  
 
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Thanks 24left. Feels like they wrote this very quickly. Kinda sounds like anyone with a Max reservation thru the end of the schedule can get a free 3-week change. That seems hard to believe. Very generous if true!! Wonder if that includes booking onto another Max flight?
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:03 pm
  #308  
 
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Originally Posted by rankourabu
So call centre wait times will now be 4 hours instead of 2?
Or when I called tonight they simply were not accepting calls. I guess the wait time has a limit approaching infinity?
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:04 pm
  #309  
 
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Originally Posted by kjnangre
Wonder if that includes booking onto another Max flight?
Until further notice, there are no more flights operated by Max aircraft.
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:06 pm
  #310  
 
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Originally Posted by Jagboi
Until further notice, there are no more flights operated by Max aircraft.
Umm, there are tons of flights available for purchase on Max planes. Look at any Max route in April.
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:12 pm
  #311  
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As @YYT82 noted earlier, the MAX is back on the schedule April 4 (at least on the YYZ-SFO route. I didn't check any of the others).

Others here can correct me as to these 2 points:

AC has a huge challenge, aside from the usual stuff. They indicate in the update that the priority is people travelling in the next 72 hours. Except, if no one is answering the phones and not everyone uses Twitter or FB, how are some people supposed to get through?

As for the 3 week window of flexibility, well, as others have said, if AC is assuming the MCAS software fix from Boeing will be uploaded and operational by April 3, then they seem to expect to operate some or all scheduled MAX flights April 4 or shortly thereafter as scheduling permits.
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:12 pm
  #312  
 
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Originally Posted by kjnangre
Umm, there are tons of flights available for purchase on Max planes. Look at any Max route in April.
Yep. looking at a lot of ex-SFO flights to YYZ and most options are still on MAX. Hopefully they put some widebodys on this route@
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:15 pm
  #313  
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Originally Posted by kjnangre
Thanks 24left. Feels like they wrote this very quickly. Kinda sounds like anyone with a Max reservation thru the end of the schedule can get a free 3-week change. That seems hard to believe. Very generous if true!! Wonder if that includes booking onto another Max flight?
As for writing this quick... this sentence was there twice, so maybe proofreading?

"We have a total fleet of 400 aircraft (including 24 Boeing 737 MAX), comprising Air Canada mainline, Air Canada Rouge and Air Canada Express aircraft."
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:16 pm
  #314  
 
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Originally Posted by Bonaventure
Yep. looking at a lot of ex-SFO flights to YYZ and most options are still on MAX. Hopefully they put some widebodys on this route@
There already were widebodies on this route. At least one daily 787. They will clearly need more of them, especially if YUL-SFO remains cancelled
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Old Mar 13, 2019, 10:16 pm
  #315  
 
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You know, the lines would be much more free if people weren't calling about their flights 4 months from now. You can bet that's half of the calls... wouldn't be surprised, with almost everyone of them yelling DYKWIA!!!
MSPeconomist likes this.
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