Air Canada Reports November Load Factor

MONTREAL, Dec. 5, 2012 /CNW Telbec/ - For the month of November, Air Canada reported a system load factor of 78.1 per cent, versus 75.9 per cent in November 2011, an increase of 2.2 percentage points.  System traffic increased 4.6 per cent on a system-wide capacity increase of 1.7 per cent. Air Canada reports traffic results on a system-wide basis, including regional airlines from which Air Canada purchases capacity.

"For the month of November, Air Canada reported a load factor of 78.1 per cent, an increase of 2.2 percentage points from the previous year and our second highest ever for the month," said Calin Rovinescu, President and Chief Executive Officer.  "Led by increases in traffic of 6.9 per cent in Asia Pacific markets, and of 7 per cent overall in the Australia, Caribbean, Mexico and Central and South America markets, Air Canada generated greater traffic in all markets the airline serves with system wide growth of 4.6 per cent on a capacity increase of 1.7 per cent through higher utilization of our existing fleet. These strong results underscore the effectiveness of our disciplined capacity management and our award winning product. I thank our employees whose professionalism and focus on taking care of customers have been instrumental in earning their loyalty."

		November			Year-To-Date
		2012	2011	Change	2012	2011	Change
Traffic (RPMs mln)		3,681	3,518	+4.6%	51,252	49,967	+2.6%
Capacity (ASMs mln)		4,711	4,632	+1.7%	61,921	61,206	+1.2%
Load Factor		78.1%	75.9%	+2.2 pts	82.8%	81.6%	+1.2 pts
Canada	RPMs	1,187	1,141	+4.0%	15,132	14,711	+2.9%
	ASMs	1,421	1,417	+0.3%	18,338	18,117	+1.2%
	LF	83.5%	80.5%	+3.0 pts	82.5%	81.2%	+1.3 pts
US Transborder	RPMs	640	622	+2.9%	8,151	7,926	+2.8%
	ASMs	846	835	+1.3%	10,390	10,136	+2.5%
	LF	75.7%	74.5%	+1.2 pts	78.5%	78.2%	+0.3 pts
Atlantic	RPMs	726	700	+3.7%	13,018	12,787	+1.8%
	ASMs	1,030	1,036	-0.6%	15,736	15,740	0.0%
	LF	70.5%	67.6%	+2.9 pts	82.7%	81.2%	+1.5 pts
Pacific	RPMs	699	654	+6.9%	9,208	8,914	+3.3%
	ASMs	853	819	+4.2%	10,439	10,283	+1.5%
	LF	81.9%	79.9%	+2.0 pts	88.2%	86.7%	+1.5 pts
Other*	RPMs	429	401	+7.0%	5,743	5,629	+2.0%
	ASMs	561	525	+6.9%	7,018	6,930	+1.3%
	LF	76.5%	76.4%	+0.1 pts	81.8%	81.2%	+0.6 pts

* Includes Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and South America

Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving more than 175 destinations on five continents.  Canada's flag carrier is the 15th largest commercial airline in the world and in 2011 served more than 33 million customers.  Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 59 Canadian cities, 56 destinations in the United States and 63 cities in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico and South America.  Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance , the world's most comprehensive air transportation network serving 1,356 destinations in 193 countries. In 2012, Air Canada was ranked Best International Airline in North America in a worldwide survey of more than 18 million airline passengers conducted by independent research firm Skytrax.

SOURCE AIR CANADA