dailynewsnblog
Each week, airlines from around the world submit schedule changes to Cirium Diio and OAG. This could be new routes, cut routes, equipment swaps, different operating periods, different times, and so on. In the latest update, 
Air Canada revealed that it has removed all Airbus A321XLR flights to London Heathrow. The carrier’s first XLR was delivered recently.
Other routes that were down to see the 
Star Alliance member’s XLRs have also been impacted. For example, all services from Montreal to Los Angeles have been removed. The route from Quebec to Porto will now begin later than previously scheduled, while XLR flights from Montreal to Berlin will end sooner than anticipated. Elsewhere, Air Canada has grown the number of XLR services from Toronto to Copenhagen and Montreal to Toulouse.
Air Canada Pulls The XLR From Heathrow
Heathrow is renowned a the lack of slots and very high fees/charges. Less well known is that the airport’s pricing incentivizes airlines to fly larger aircraft. Against this backdrop, Air Canada was to be Heathrow’s first and only long-haul operator of the XLR. But no more. (Aer Lingus and Iberia both use the XLR to Heathrow in between long-haul services from their respective hubs.)
Canada’s largest airline had planned to fly the single-aisle equipment on a time-limited basis to the UK’s busiest airport. The first departure was to leave 
Toronto on August 31 and run through October 22. The schedule is shown below, with the block time back to North America at a substantial eight hours and 40 minutes. This includes taxi time at both airports, flight time, and a period for short delays. Narrowbodies usually cruise slower than widebodies.
|
Frequency |
Toronto To Heathrow; Local Times |
Heathrow To Toronto; Local Times |
|---|---|---|
|
Daily |
9:05 PM-9:35 AM+1 (seven hours and 30 minutes) |
12:05 PM-3:45 PM (eight hours and 40 minutes) |
All services on the 182-seat equipment have been removed. The latest information shows that the 300-seat 777-200LR will now operate between August 31 and September 30, followed by the 255-seat 787-8 and the 298-seat 787-9 from October 1 until October 22. It’ll mainly be in the hands of the 787-9 (19 departures).
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In September 2025, Mark Galardo, Air Canada’s Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, discussed the potential role of the XLR to Heathrow. He stated that it would initially not be deployed on the specific flights that the carrier believes make the most sense. Perhaps that is why it has been removed, although it could also be because of delays in aircraft deliveries. The airline has been contacted for comment.
Air Canada’s real intention for the XLR to Heathrow is for it to operate during the day to the UK’s busiest airport. Such flights were last available six years ago, when the 787-8 was used. Multiple other widebodies were used in the past. In early 2020, services departed from Toronto at 8:40 AM and arrived in Europe at 8:35 PM local time. Galardo said:
“We are missing the Toronto-Heathrow day tripper. This aircraft [the XLR] will help us restore that day tripper.”
Daytime flights across the North Atlantic are rare, although WestJet just started its first operation. For such flights to work, there must be strong local traffic and relatively few timezone changes. Air Canada services from Toronto would have both. Restoring this specific operation would be far less risky on the XLR than a widebody. Of course, a major impediment is slots. It is unclear what happened to Air Canada’s slots.
This Is Air Canada’s Latest XLR Network
Analyzing the carrier’s schedule submission shows that the latest plan is for the XLR to enter commercial service on June 15 from Montreal to Toulouse. This is unchanged from prior weeks.
The removal of the variant from the route to Heathrow means that the launch from Canada’s busiest airport has been pushed back significantly, from August 31 to October 25. On that day, XLR flights to both Manchester and Tenerife South will take off. Tenerife is a brand-new market from Canada.
For now, at least, Air Canada has scheduled 12 routes between June and December. Two are domestic, and ten are to Europe. This reflects what is known on May 5 and is likely to change. After all, the XLR has already been removed from routes to Dublin, Edinburgh, Heathrow, Los Angeles, and Palma de Mallorca. However, most of them were only set to have a limited number of services on the variant.
