Air Canada’s big bet on secondary cities: Porto leads a measured European pivot
June 6, 2025
Air Canada has landed in the Portuguese city of Porto for the first time.
Arriving on June 5, the inaugural flight marks the start of a three-times-a-week service from Montreal (YUL), operated by the three-class Airbus A330-300.
It’s Air Canada’s second destination in Portugal after Lisbon. The inauguration comes ahead of more European route launches this month, including Naples, Prague and Edinburgh.
“We design routes like this one to appeal to our customers throughout our North American network,” says Air Canada CCO Mark Galardo. “Porto offers an array of history, culture, outdoor adventures, and gastronomic experiences.”
Outbound flights are overnight, leaving Montreal late in the evening and arriving in Porto the next day. They return to Canada early afternoon, making it easy for passengers to form onward connections if necessary.
- Flight AC928 – Departs YUL 21:50 – Arrives OPO 09:20 (+1 day) – Operates Mon, Wed, Sat
- Flight AC929 – Departs OPO 11:20 – Arrives YUL 13:45 – Operates Tue, Thu, Sun
The airline will compete head-to-head with Air Transat on the route, offering a full-service alternative to Transat’s all-economy proposition.
While Transat does offer a meal, served with one glass of wine, Air Canada offers free beverages throughout the flight and a hot second meal.
It also has WiFi, power outlets and a wider selection of inflight entertainment than Air Transat, as well as a three-class cabin including lie flat seating in business class.
Air Canada’s strategic focus on secondary cities
The addition of Porto to the network is part of a deliberate strategy shift on the part of Air Canada.
The airline has been tapping seasonal demand to less well-served European cities via its Canadian hubs. It’s one of four routes launched for Summer 2025 that follow this trend:
- Montreal – Porto
- Montreal – Naples
- Montreal – Edinburgh
- Toronto – Prague
Reducing reliance on major European gateways offers travellers more direct flight options, saving time and stress over connecting at hubs like Frankfurt.
The routes cater to leisure travellers looking for new experiences, as well as to the diaspora living in Canada seeking an easier way to visit friends and family.
Also fueling demand on these routes is Air Canada’s ‘sixth freedom’ traffic – passengers flying from US airports to connect in Canadian hubs for onward travel.
According to Routes, the airline’s sixth freedom revenues grew by 12% year on year in the first quarter of 2025. This growth has gone some way to offset the drop in demand for point-to-point transborder travel caused by trade tensions.
The airline times its US to Canada flights to connect easily with onward transatlantic services. While it has pulled some US routes for the winter season, it is adding capacity at specific bank times from major US airports to promote as much sixth freedom traffic as possible.
Although the US is still a significant market for Air Canada, its summer network is more significantly weighted towards international, long-haul routes. This diversification of its destinations has given it a welcome buffer against declining US demand.
Going forward, it sees potential to increase sixth freedom traffic from Mexico as well.
“Overall, we like the Mexico market, but we also like the counter-seasonality of that market and the potential Sixth Freedom contribution,” noted Air Canada CCO Mark Galardo, as shared by Routes.
Air Canada has to wait a bit longer for the A321XLR
At its investor day in 2024, the airline highlighted the central role of the A321XLR in its future network strategy.
Specifically, the long-range narrowbody would enable new connections from its Canadian hubs into South America, targeting unserved and underserved routes.
However, in its first quarter earnings call, the airline disclosed that it would not be receiving any Airbus A321XLR in 2025.
The carrier has 30 of the type on order, according to ch-aviation, and had expected to receive its first in late 2024. Now, it appears that the first will not arrive until well into 2026.
Also hampering its plans is the late delivery of Boeing 787-10 Dreamliners, which it will also be waiting until 2026 to receive.
“The Airbus A321XLR will be delayed by a few months, with the first aircraft now due to be delivered in 2026,” explained John Di Bert, Air Canada’s CFO, during the earnings call. “The Boeing 787-10 deliveries are also delayed, and the first two aircraft are now expected in 2026.”
