What happened
Air Canada has taken delivery of its first Airbus A321XLR (registration C-GXLR), marking a key milestone in its fleet modernization. The carrier has 30 A321XLRs on order (15 purchased, 15 leased). The aircraft features a cabin with 182 total seats: 14 business class seats in a herringbone layout using the Collins Aerospace Aurora platform (19” 4K OLED monitors, Bluetooth audio, USB-C, AC power) and 168 economy class seats. Notably, there is no premium economy cabin. Air Canada plans to deploy these aircraft on long and thin routes, specifically targeting transatlantic flights from Montreal and Toronto, as well as key North American transcontinental markets. This allows the airline to serve destinations where a widebody like the A330 is too large, offering nonstop convenience