Air Canada announced on May 9 that delivery of the first Airbus A321XLRS and Boeing 787-10 will be delayed next year.
Chief Financial Officer John Di Burt said in a call to the company's quarterly revenue that the A321neo's long-range variant is “later months behind, with the first aircraft expected to be delivered in 2026.”
The Montreal-based carrier previously foresaw the delivery of the A321XLR in the fourth quarter, disclosing a plan to renew the fleet that continues into 2029.
On the widebody side, Garard says Air Canada's first two 787-10s (the biggest variant of Boeing's flagship widebody) are also behind in 2026.
“We are actively managing and working with our partners to mitigate the impact of delays in OEM delivery between 2026 and 2028,” he says.
Air Canada has not cited the reasons for the most generous aircraft delivery delays, but both Airbus and Boeing have been increasing the stability of its production and supply chains for months.
In particular, airlines do not expect to have a short-term impact on aircraft delivery related to US-imposed tariffs in Canada and Europe. Air Canada did not respond to requests for comment regarding the delayed delivery of the A321XLR and 787-10.
Fleet data from aerial analytics firm Cirium shows that Air Canada is not fully fulfilling its 18 787-10 orders and shows 12 more options.
The carrier also holds solid orders for 30 A321XLRS and has the option to order another 10 between 2030 and 2032. The incoming narrow bodies are equipped with Pratt & Whitney (P&W) PW1100G gear turbo fan (GTFS).
When I place the A321XLR In the March 2022 aircraft order, Air Canada had expected to receive its first in the first quarter of 2024, based on previous Airbus forecasts for 2023.
Di Bert said Air Canada is hoping to deliver the first A321XLR and 787-10 in the first three months of next year, and has admitted that Air Canada is already “waiting or these aircraft.”
“We're ready to unfold them,” he says. “We manage our business around these parameters, but we've been exploring for a few years.”
Chief Executive Officer Michael Rousseau says both the A321XLR and the 787-10 are “important to our new frontier plan, our long distance plan.”
“We're ready to take them in and take advantage of them as we move forward.”
Meanwhile, the company says that Pratt & Whitney's recall of PW1500G GTF has reached the “peak” of the A220-300S. According to Cirium, Air Canada currently has five A220s in “store.”
“We look forward to the progressive return to the Airbus A220 Fleet to services,” says Mark Galado, top commercial director.
Air Canada expects to deliver eight A220s and three 737 Max 8S for the rest of 2025.
The company lost $122 million ($73 million) in the first quarter, compared to a loss of $81 million over the same time last year as the US and transatlantic markets suffered from a slump in air traffic.
