dailynewsnblog
You might know by now that 
Air Canada plans to fly to the Canary Islands. It has added not one but two brand-new routes, both of which will use the Airbus A321XLR. You might have thought these links would be better suited to the leisure carrier Air Transat.
The two upcoming routes are highly intriguing. That’s particularly the case because of United Airlines’ Newark-Tenerife South service, which ended in May 2025. Despite the inevitable financial incentives and perhaps other risk-sharing agreements, the route clearly struggled. The operating period changed quite a lot as it tried to find what worked.
The First Route Will Lift Off On October 25
Air Canada, like other northern airlines, will switch to winter schedules on October 25, which is based on IATA slot seasons. On October 25, the carrier will lift off from 
Toronto to Tenerife South, with two weekly seasonal services on the 182-seat A321XLR. The Canaries are among the only warm places in Europe in the winter.
It will be the first time this market, which will cover 3,135 nautical miles (5,806 km) each way, has ever been served. It’ll become the Canary Islands’ new longest nonstop offering. It’ll surpass the distance of what was to be number one in 2026, Plus Ultra from Tenerife North to Caracas, by nearly 4%.
Unsurprisingly, booking data shows that the existing market between Toronto and Tenerife is tiny. Fewer than 1,500 local passengers flew last year. Despite this, it was North America’s second-largest market to/from Tenerife South, behind New York. Clearly, Air Canada will have to meaningfully stimulate the local demand, and supplement it with connecting traffic over the airline’s busiest hub. Most of those passengers will be bound to/from the US.
|
Days |
Toronto To Tenerife South; Local Times |
Days |
Tenerife South To Toronto; Local Times |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Thursdays and Sundays |
AC954*: 8:35 pm-9:00 am+1 |
Mondays and Fridays |
AC955**: 10:55 am-2:50 pm |
|
* The flight number was previously used from Montreal to Fort-de-France, Montreal to Pointe-à-Pitre, and, briefly, Toronto to Fort Myers |
** Previously used from Fort-de-France to Montreal, Pointe-à-Pitre to Montreal, and, briefly, Fort Myers to Toronto |
The Second Route Will Begin On October 31
Six days later, on October 31, Air Canada will inaugurate another brand-new market: Montreal to Tenerife South. Even more unusually, this will operate weekly. According to Cirium Diio data, it will be the carrier’s least-served European market this winter. Despite only having around 900 passengers, it was Tenerife South’s fifth-largest unserved North American market last year.
On Saturdays, AC956 will leave Montreal at 9:00 pm and arrive at 9:00 am local time the following day. On Sundays, AC957 will depart at 10:55 am and get back at 2:10 pm local time. When writing, it is not entirely clear how this route will be crewed. In the past, the flight numbers AC956/AC957 were previously used between Toronto and San Jose (Costa Rica), Montreal and Port-au-Prince, and Toronto and San Juan.
Up To 16-Hour Nonstop Flights: Iberia’s 10 New Ultra-Long Routes In 2026
Influenced by external factors, one very long link takes the crown, but what about the rest?
These Are Air Canada’s European XLR Routes (For Now)
When writing, and subject to change, the Canadian flag carrier’s inaugural passenger-carrying XLR service is due to take place on June 15, from Montreal to Toulouse (up to five weekly). Assuming things don’t change, that’ll be two days before the variant’s first domestic link, from Montreal to Calgary.
Five other European routes will operate from Montreal this year: Berlin (three weekly; from July 18), Lyon (four weekly; from September 7), Nantes (up to four weekly; from July 22), Porto (five weekly; from August 17), and now Tenerife South (weekly; from October 31).
Four transatlantic routes are currently planned from Toronto: Copenhagen (three weekly; from October 27), London Heathrow (daily; from August 31), Manchester (four weekly; from October 25), and now Tenerife South (two weekly; from October 25). Manchester flights on the XLR are scheduled to rise to daily in summer 2027.
Things can change quickly, especially before equipment has entered service. In the past, Air Canada had planned XLR flights to Dublin, Edinburgh, and Palma de Mallorca. The variant has been removed from these routes. Switching to widebody equipment to Palma was influenced by the stage length and the high summer temperature, both of which would reduce the XLR’s performance, at least with a good payload.
