Air Canada Express

Air Canada Express is a brand name of regional feeder flights for Air Canada that are subcontracted to other airlines. Presently, Jazz Aviation and PAL Airlines are the sole operators of Air Canada Express flights. They primarily connect smaller cities with Air Canada's domestic hub airports and focus cities, although they offer some point-to-point and international service to the United States.

History

On 26 April 2011, Air Canada announced its intention to retire the Air Canada Jazz brand and create the Air Canada Express brand. Prior to establishing the Express name, the flights operated primarily under the Air Canada Jazz or Air Canada Alliance banners.
As of January 2020, Air Georgian no longer provided services under the capacity purchase agreement. Those services were transferred back to Jazz Aviation. On 1 March 2021, it was also announced that Sky Regional Airlines would also no longer provide services under the capacity purchase agreement and therefore Jazz Aviation would become the sole operator of the express brand.
However, in May 2023, Air Canada signed a letter of intent with PAL Airlines for a five-year capacity purchase agreement. This deal involved the purchase of up to six Bombardier Q400s from Air Canada, which PAL Airlines would operate under the Air Canada Express brand in addition to their existing schedule and charter business. In the announcement, Air Canada described the prospective agreement with PAL Airlines as a "bridging arrangement" due to a need for additional regional capacity as a result of industry-wide pilot shortages. Service with PAL began in July 2023.

Operators and fleet

Current fleet

, the Air Canada Express fleet consists of the following aircraft:

Historical fleet

The Air Canada Express brand, through its various regional and commuter airline partners, operated a variety of turbofan and twin turboprop aircraft over the years including the following types:

Incidents and accidents

On 20 April 2016, Air Canada Express flight 7804, which was operated by an EVAS Air Beechcraft 1900D, crashed upon landing at Gander International Airport. At the time of arrival, the weather conditions were described as ¨Heavy Snow¨ and the visibility at the airport was 1/8 Statute mile visibility. The flight, arriving from Goose Bay, touched down right of the runway centerline of runway 03, and immediately veered right. The nose gear of the aircraft struck a snow windrow and subsequently collapsed, causing 7 out of the 8 blades to separate from the engines. The right side of the fuselage was punctured by a propeller blade. Of the 14 occupants onboard, everyone survived, and 3 people sustained minor injuries.
On 28 December 2024, a De Havilland Canada DHC-8-400 operating as Flight 2259 by PAL Airlines, had its left main landing gear collapse on landing at Halifax Stanfield International Airport. The wing also caught on fire, but all 77 people on board survived without serious injuries. The aircraft was substantially damaged.