Air Canada rouge is a Canadian leisure airline based in Toronto. The carrier is
a wholly owned subsidiary of Air Canada and is fully integrated into the Air
Canada mainline and Air Canada Express networks. Flights are sold with AC
flight numbers, but are listed as "operated by Air Canada rouge".
History The airline was launched in December
2012 and began services on July 1, 2013. It is part of the Air Canada Leisure
Group. At the time of the launch it had a fleet of four aircraft, 2 Airbus A319s
and 2 Boeing 767s, transferred from the parent company. Its fleet expanded to 28
aircraft within 18 months and is expected to reach 16 Boeing 767s, 20
Airbus A319s and 5 Airbus A321s by mid-2017.
On March 24, 2014, Air Canada announced plans for Air Canada rouge to expand
into Western Canada beginning in spring 2014, to serve predominantly leisure
markets from Vancouver and Calgary to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Las Vegas,
Phoenix, Palm Springs, Honolulu, Maui and Anchorage.
A seasonal service from Vancouver to Osaka/Kansai started in May 2015.
Destinations Air Canada rouge serves predominantly
leisure destinations in Europe, the Caribbean, Central America, Mexico and
the United States. Destinations in Europe include Edinburgh, Venice,
Athens, Lisbon, Dublin, Nice, Barcelona, Rome, Budapest and Manchester.
Destinations in the Caribbean include Cuba, Jamaica, Curaçao and the Dominican
Republic. As of the Summer 2015 Air Canada rouge plans to expand within
Canada, servicing summer flight between Calgary - Halifax, Toronto - Kelowna,
Toronto - Abbotsford and year round service between Toronto - Sydney NS.
Fleet The Air Canada rouge fleet consists of
34 aircraft. The Air Canada rouge Airbus A319 has 16
more seats than a regular Air Canada Airbus A319, with 136 seats. The first
four rows being for rouge Plus and Premium rouge passengers. The Air Canada
rouge Boeing 767-300ER carries 53 more passengers than most regular Air Canada
Boeing 767-300ER aircraft, with 280 seats. Of these 221 are economy, 35
rouge Plus and 24 Premium rouge. Services
Air Canada rouge is equipped with a wireless streaming entertainment system
that passengers can use directly on their personal devices, such as Apple
iOS and Android devices, as well as laptops. The streaming system only works
on Android/iOS devices if the Air Canada application is downloaded prior to the
flight. Laptop use requires the Flash plug-in. iPads are available for rental
to Economy Class passengers and are complimentary for Premium Rouge
customers. Baggage policy is the same as Air
Canada's, and catering is complimentary on flights to/from Europe, with a
buy-on-board offering on all other flights in line with the mainline
service. Premium Rouge food and beverages are complimentary. Air
Canada's mainline economy class fare services as well as full-fare and
discounted Business Class apply to the new carrier with some adjustments.
Long tarmac delays Air Canada rouge has been cited by the
United States Department of Transportation for violating the tarmac
delay rule on an Orlando-Toronto flight in January 2014, resulting in a $90,000
civil penalty. The delay was triggered when weather diverted the flight to
Buffalo at 10:09 p.m. on Jan. 11. Under the United States Department of
Transportation rules for international flights, the carrier was required to
provide food and water after two hours on the ground, and to give passengers an
opportunity to deplane after four hours. Believing that the aircraft could be
quickly refueled and dispatched to Toronto, Rouge did not request a gate
until after three hours had passed. Passengers eventually deplaned at 2:50
a.m., after the four-hour deadline. Half the amount will be waived if the carrier
avoids repeat violations for one year. References
External links Official website