MONTREAL, Aug. 20, 2013 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada today announced the opening of a new state-of-the-art global Operations Centre (OC) in Brampton, Ontario which is expected to significantly improve its operational capabilities and efficiencies.  The new facility is the result of a two-year, $60-million project and will serve as the central control for the airline's operations, with 400 employees overseeing, on a 24/7 basis, nearly 600 Air Canada flights each day.

"Air Canada is already recognized as one of the world's best airlines and our new, leading-edge OC will further strengthen our position.  This new mission control centre incorporates the latest in technological and other design elements. Further, we can expect important efficiencies with teams from all areas of the operation including Operations Control, Flight Dispatch, Airports, Revenue Management, Maintenance, Crew Scheduling, Cargo, Air Canada rouge and Customer Journey Management working under one roof to get our customers to their destinations safely, on-time and comfortably," said Calin Rovinescu, President and Chief Executive Officer. "The opening of this centre is another step in our ongoing transformation as reflected in our accumulation of international awards and honours, such as being designated the only Four-Star network carrier in North America and the Best Airline in North America."

The new, 75,000-square-foot facility has been completed on-time and within budget. It will be fully operational in the first quarter of 2014 following a period of testing, training and transition. Once in service, it will become the global nerve centre for Air Canada's operations ensuring delivery of Air Canada's schedule and safe transport of approximately 35 million Air Canada customers annually. To enable Air Canada to meet its regular schedule, the OC is responsible for:

• decision-making on operating flights within 48 hours of scheduled departure
• ensuring appropriate resources, such as crews and aircraft, are available
• managing the customer journey experience to get customers to destination as quickly and easily as possible
• schedule changes and cancellations, including aircraft changes or extra flight additions, in response to unforeseen circumstances
• leading preparations for disruptions, such as winter storms, and developing and implementing recovery plans

Air Canada maintains its corporate headquarters in Montreal, Quebec where it employs more than 5,000 people and it is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving more than 175 destinations on five continents.  Canada's flag carrier is the 15th largest commercial airline in the world and in 2012 served close to 35 million customers.  Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 60 Canadian cities, 53 destinations in the United States and 67 cities in Europe, the Middle East, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico and South America. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation network serving 1,328 destinations in 195 countries.  Air Canada is the only international network carrier in North America to receive a Four-Star ranking according to independent U.K. research firm Skytrax that ranked Air Canada in a worldwide survey of more than 18 million airline passengers as Best Airline in North America in 2013 for the fourth consecutive year. For more information, please visit: www.aircanada.com.

SOURCE Air Canada