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Canadian Airlines International facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
"Canadian Airlines" redirects here. For the airlines of Canada, see List of airlines of Canada. For the defunct airlines of Canada, see List of defunct airlines of Canada.
Not to be confused with Air Canada, Canadian Airways, or Canadian Airways Congo.
Quick facts for kids
Canadian Airlines International
Lignes aériennes Canadien International
Canadian Airlines logo.svg
Founded March 27, 1987 (1987-03-27)
(amalgamation)
Ceased operations January 1, 2001 (2001-01-01)
(acquired by Air Canada)
Hubs
Focus cities
  • Edmonton
  • Halifax
  • Ottawa
Frequent-flyer program Canadian Plus
Alliance Oneworld (1999—2000)
Subsidiaries
Parent company Canadian Airlines Corporation
Headquarters Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Key people Kevin Benson (President & CEO)

Canadian Airlines International Ltd. was a Canadian airline that flew from 1987 to 2001. It was often called "Canadian Airlines" or just "Canadian." This airline was the second largest in Canada, right after Air Canada.

At its busiest in 1996, Canadian Airlines flew over 11.9 million passengers. It reached more than 160 places in 17 countries across five continents. In Canada, it served 105 cities, more than any other airline. Canadian Airlines was also one of the first members of the Oneworld airline group.

The airline's main office was in Calgary, Alberta. By the end of 1999, it made about $3 billion. In 2000, Air Canada bought Canadian Airlines. The two companies officially joined on January 1, 2001.

History of Canadian Airlines

Canadian Airlines DC-10-30 C-GCPC
A McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 plane in an older paint style in 1988.

Canadian Airlines International was the main part of its parent company, Canadian Airlines Corporation. The airline started on March 27, 1987. This happened when Pacific Western Airlines bought Canadian Pacific Air Lines (also known as CP Air). CP Air had recently bought Eastern Provincial Airways and Nordair.

In 1989, Canadian Airlines bought Wardair. This helped them get new flight paths, including routes to the UK and Europe. Their main travel hubs were at Montréal-Dorval, Toronto Pearson International Airport, Vancouver International Airport, and Calgary International Airport.

After a tough time for airlines in 1991, Canadian Airlines made its operations simpler. They also worked to pay off over $700 million in debt. American Airlines Group also gave them some money to help.

In 1996, Kevin Benson, the boss at the time, shared a plan to make Canadian Airlines more profitable. This plan aimed to control costs, grow income, and update their planes. Canadian Airlines was also a founding member of the Oneworld airline alliance. Other founding members included American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, and Qantas. The plan started well. But in 1998, an economic problem in Asia caused fewer people to fly. Canadian Airlines lost a lot of money on its flights across the Pacific Ocean.

Canadian Airlines logo (historic)
The first Canadian Airlines logo.

"Canadian Plus" was the biggest frequent flyer program in Canada. It had over three million members. They could earn points with more than 60 airline, hotel, car rental, and bank partners.

In its last few years, Canadian Airlines added more international flights in Asia. They started flying to the Philippines, making it seven places in Asia. At that time, Canadian Airlines flew to more places in Asia, more often, than any other Canadian airline.

Canadian Airlines wanted to make its Vancouver hub the main gateway between North America and Asia. They worked with American Airlines through a codesharing agreement. This helped them get more travelers flying between the U.S. and Asia.

Canadian Boeing 747-400 KvW
A Boeing 747-400 plane landing at the old Kai Tak Airport in 1998.

Air Canada Takes Over

On August 20, 1999, Air Canada made an offer to Canadian Airlines. Air Canada wanted to buy Canadian's international routes and airport spots. Canadian Airlines would then only fly shorter regional routes. Canadian Airlines said no to this offer. This offer came after talks about a possible merger between the two airlines earlier in 1999.

American Airlines supported the idea of a merger. American Airlines already owned 25% of Canadian Airlines. This was the most a foreign company could own in a Canadian airline. The CEO of American Airlines, Donald J. Carty, wanted to control the new, bigger Air Canada. He hoped to move it from the Star Alliance to the Oneworld alliance. American Airlines tried to get the Canadian government to allow more foreign ownership, but it didn't work. Later, American Airlines sold its shares in Air Canada.

A few days later, on August 24, 1999, another company called Onex Corporation made an offer to buy Canadian Airlines. This offer was supported by American Airlines' parent company, AMR Corporation. Canadian Airlines announced it would support this offer. Air Canada rejected it. On August 31, 1999, Air Canada took steps to stop any takeover attempts.

On October 19, 1999, Air Canada made its own offer. It was backed by its Star Alliance partners, Lufthansa, United Airlines, and CIBC. Air Canada offered to buy Canadian Airlines and keep it as a separate company. On November 2, Air Canada increased its offer.

On November 5, 1999, a judge in Quebec said the Onex takeover was against the law. The law said no single shareholder could control more than 10% of the company. Onex then took back its offer. Air Canada said it would go ahead with buying Canadian Airlines.

On December 4, Canadian Airlines' leaders suggested shareholders accept Air Canada's offer. Air Canada officially took control of Canadian Airlines on December 8, 1999, after government approval. The government approved the takeover on December 21, 1999. Canadian Airlines officially became part of Air Canada on December 23, 1999.

Canadian Airlines continued to operate as a separate company for most of 2000. By October 2000, all of Canadian Airlines' systems and employees were fully joined with Air Canada. After the merger, Air Canada started reducing its staff. On December 22, 2000, they announced 3,500 job cuts. More cuts happened after the September 11 attacks in 2001.

When the merger happened, Canadian Airlines carried over 40% of passengers flying within Canada. After the takeover, Air Canada controlled over 90% of domestic flights. It also became dominant in international and Canada-U.S. flights.

First Airline Website

Canadian Airlines was the first airline in the world to have a website on the internet (www.cdnair.ca). The website started in April 1994. It was mentioned in the Canadian Internet Handbook in 1994 and 1995. It was special not just for being the first airline website, but also for letting people check flight times and fares online. Canadian news, like CBC Venture and Maclean's Magazine, reported on this. Grant Fengstad created the website. He believed the internet would change how people traveled.

Where Canadian Airlines Flew

This is a list of airports that Canadian Airlines International flew to in the 1980s and 1990s.

Asia

East Asia

Southeast Asia

Europe

Eastern Europe

Northern Europe

Southern Europe

  •  Italy
    • Milan - Milan Malpensa Airport
    • Rome - Leonardo da Vinci–Fiumicino Airport

Western Europe

North America

Canada

Mexico

United States

Oceania

South America

Plane Designs (Livery)

Canadian Airlines 737-275Adv
A Boeing 737-200 plane at Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport in 2001.
Canadian Airlines A320-211
An Airbus A320 plane at Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport in 2001.
Canadian Airlines 737-217Adv
A Boeing 737-200 plane with a mix of Canadian and Air Canada colors in 2001.

When Canadian Airlines started in 1987, it showed off its new plane design, called a livery. It used light grey, dark grey, navy blue, and red colors. This design was based on the look of its earlier airline, Canadian Pacific Airlines. The bottom part of the plane was navy blue, with light grey and red stripes above it. The tail was blue and had the airline's new logo.

The new Canadian Airlines logo combined five grey stripes from Canadian Pacific. These stripes stood for the five continents the airline flew to. Over these stripes was a bright red arrow shape, called a chevron. This chevron was a simpler version of the Pacific Western Airlines logo. It was placed over the stripes, meaning "Wings over 5 continents." The same logo, in a square shape, was also used to replace the letter "e" in the French word "Canadien" and the third "a" in the English word "Canadian" on the plane's side.

In January 1999, Canadian Airlines changed its plane design again. This was less than a year before it merged with Air Canada. This new design, called "Proud Wings," had a large Canada goose painted on the plane's tail. The airline's name was written in a new font. This new font also used a special chevron character. It again replaced the "e" in "Canadien" and the third "a" in "Canadian." However, this new design came so late that most planes still had the old chevron design when the merger happened. Until the merger with Air Canada was finished in 2001, most Canadian planes had a mix of designs. They had an Air Canada maple leaf on the tail but still said "Canadian" on the sides.

Planes Canadian Airlines Used (Fleet)

When Canadian Airlines International was bought by Air Canada in 2001, its fleet included these aircraft:

Canadian Airlines International Fleet (in December 1999, when bought)
Aircraft Total Orders Passengers Notes
C Y Total
Airbus A320-200 13 — 24 108 132 9 planes still flew with Air Canada.
Boeing 737-200/Adv 43 — 12 88 100
— 112 112
Boeing 747-400 4 — 42 379 421 Planes were given to Air Canada. Air Canada stopped using them in 2004.
Boeing 767-300ER 23 — 25 180 205 All planes went to Air Canada (or later to Air Canada Rouge). Most were retired by 2020. Some were later changed into cargo planes for Air Canada Cargo by 2021.
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 14 — 28 228 256 These planes were not given to Air Canada. They were sold or retired when the merger finished.
Total 97 —

Jet Planes

Propeller Planes (Turboprop)

Besides jet planes, Canadian Regional Airlines also used these propeller planes for Canadian Airlines:

  • British Aerospace BAe Jetstream 31
  • de Havilland Canada DHC-8 Dash 8-100 and -300
  • Beechcraft 1900D
  • ATR-42
  • ATR-72

What Was Offered on Flights (In-flight Services)

Canadian Airlines offered three types of seating:

  • First Class (F)
  • Business Class (J)
  • Canadian Class (Y) (also called Economy Class on propeller planes)

First Class was on large, wide-body jets. Business Class was on flights that didn't use smaller regional jets or propeller planes.

In 1987, Canadian Airlines stopped allowing smoking on all flights within Canada.

Food

Food for flights within Canada came from LSG Sky Chefs. Food for other flights came from local companies.

Plane Care (Maintenance)

Canadian Airlines had its own teams to take care of its planes. At airports where Canadian Airlines didn't have its own teams, other airlines helped service the planes.

Airport Services (Ground Handling)

Canadian Airlines also had its own teams for ground handling. This included handling baggage. The cleaning, lavatory service, and seat repairs were done by Canadian Airlines' cleaning department at its own airports.

Fun on Flights (Entertainment)

Most international and medium-length flights had video and audio entertainment. Shorter flights only had audio entertainment.

Reading Materials

Newspapers and magazines offered on most flights included:

  • Canadian – the official magazine of Canadian Airlines
  • Newspapers – The Globe and Mail, USA Today
  • Magazines – Maclean's

Airport Lounges

Canadian Airlines had special lounges called Empress Lounge. These were located at several airports in Canada and other countries:

Other Companies Owned by Canadian Airlines (Subsidiaries)

Canadian Regional F-28-1000
A Canadian Regional Airlines plane at Toronto Pearson International Airport in 1998.

Canadian Airlines had five main parts for its flights within Canada:

  • Canadian Partner served Ontario and was known as Ontario Express.
  • Canadian Regional Airlines flew to 69 places in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, the Northwest Territories, Ontario, and the United States. Canadian Airlines fully owned Canadian Regional.
  • Calm Air flew to 27 places in Manitoba, northwestern Ontario, and the Northwest Territories. Canadian Regional owned 45% of Calm Air, which still operates today.
  • Inter-Canadien flew to Ottawa, Toronto, Labrador, and 26 places across Quebec. Canadian Regional fully owned Inter-Canadien.
  • Air Atlantic was a partner of Canadian Airlines. It flew to 16 places in the Atlantic provinces, Quebec, Ontario, and the United States.
  • Canadian North was a part of Canadian Airlines created to serve the northern regions. Canadian North flew to 10 places from its bases in Edmonton and Winnipeg. It also worked with Aklak Air, an Inuit-owned airline. Canadian North was sold in 1998 and still operates on its own.

Besides flying passengers, Canadian Airlines also ran the biggest tour company in Canada, called Canadian Holidays. They also had the Canadian Getaways program. These companies offered trips to places across North and South America. Their cargo business, Canadian Air Cargo, shipped goods in Canada and the United States.

Canadian Airlines in Movies and TV

In 1994, the Canadian children's TV show Mighty Machines filmed an episode at Toronto Pearson International Airport. It showed Canadian Airlines jets (a McDonnell Douglas DC-10, a Boeing 737-200, and an Airbus A320) and other airline vehicles.

In the 1996 movie, Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco, a family is flying to Canada on Canadian Airlines. Their pets escape and chase the Canadian Airlines jet. They sit on the runway as the Canadian 737 takes off over them. Many other Canadian Airlines planes are visible in this scene. Even though the scene was supposed to be at San Francisco International Airport, it was actually filmed at the Abbotsford International Airport in Abbotsford, British Columbia.

Accidents and Incidents

No one died on Canadian Airlines International flights. There were only two main incidents:

  • On October 19, 1995, Canadian Airlines International Flight 17 stopped its takeoff because of an engine problem. It then went past the end of the runway at Vancouver International Airport.
  • On September 6, 1997, Canadian Airlines International Flight 30 stopped its takeoff after an engine caught fire at Beijing Capital International Airport.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Canadian Airlines International para niños

  • List of defunct airlines of Canada
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