MONTREAL, Oct. 15 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada became today the first North American airline to release a free BlackBerry(R) application providing travellers with BlackBerry devices convenient and easy real-time access to a wide-range of flight information including; retrieving electronic boarding passes, tracking flight information in real-time, receiving notification of itinerary changes and obtaining other details about Air Canada flights.

"With the release of our new Blackberry App, Air Canada continues to be an industry leader now offering more and more customers innovative mobile and wireless services that provide real-time information and convenient functions tailored for people on the move. This Blackberry App significantly expands these options enabling travellers to check-in, board and obtain other details about Air Canada flights," said Ben Smith, Executive Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer. "In addition, we have revamped our mobile portal http://mobile.aircanada.com to mirror the features of the Air Canada BlackBerry App. This is another step in introducing more cutting-edge technical innovations that will enhance and simplify our self-service and mobile options for customers who like the freedom of managing their own travel. We will continue to add new features in response to customer demand."

Available free on-line from BlackBerry App World(TM) (www.blackberry.com/appworld) or on Air Canada's mobile site (http://mobile.aircanada.com), the new application was developed for Air Canada by IBM Canada. It will among other things enable users to: keep track of and update all of their Air Canada and Jazz flights from a single location; receive messages and link to their electronic boarding passes; access Air Canada Mobile check-in to select a seat and retrieve an electronic boarding pass; book flights using an Air Canada Flight Pass; rent a car or access other convenient travel links; and find and track any Air Canada or Jazz flight; subscribe to flight notification informing them of flight delays.

Air Canada, recognized as an industry leader in self-service and mobile technology - it was the first airline in the world to introduce 2-D Electronic Boarding Passes in 2007 - is also refining and expanding its existing products to better meet the needs of customers. Among other things Air Canada is:

- Adding new functions to airport kiosks, offering customers the option
      to purchase an upgrade, reprint boarding passes, and obtain an
      electronic boarding pass, including at international airports

    - Enhancing its boarding passes to provide more and new travel
      information such as check-in and baggage drop-off times

    - Offering easy-to-use, personalized flight notification so customers can
      be automatically updated through their mobile devices about changes to
      their itinerary. For greater ease, customers can receive all Air Canada
      wireless communications in a single, convenient easy to access location
      called "My Message" in-box on computers and mobile devices.

    - Providing additional mobile detail about the status of Air Canada
      flights, including gate information, flight status, diversions,
      arrivals and local weather conditions

Montréal-based Air Canada provides scheduled and charter air transportation for passengers and cargo to more than 170 destinations on five continents, including 58 communities across Canada and 57 destinations in the United States - by far the most of any carrier within Canada or between Canada and the United States. Canada's flag carrier is the 13th largest commercial airline in the world and serves 33 million customers annually operating a modern fuel-efficient fleet with an average age of just nine years.

Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, providing the world's most comprehensive air transportation network for Canadian domestic, transborder and international travel. Air Canada aircraft offer customers individualized seatback in-flight entertainment systems with hundreds of hours of complimentary digital audio-visual entertainment. As well, customers can collect Aeroplan miles for future rewards through Canada's leading loyalty program.

In 2008, the readers of Business Traveler magazine voted Air Canada "Best In-Flight Services in North America," "Best Airline for Business Class Service in North America" and "Best North American Airline for International Travel."