Air Canada buys 18 planes of the largest Boeing 787 Dreamliner model

Artistic rendering of Air Canada's Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner aircraft. (Air Canada)

Air Canada is set to acquire even more of Boeing’s flagship long-range commercial passenger aircraft.

On Monday, Canada’s flag carrier announced it had placed an order for 18 Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner aircraft, which will be used to replace the airline’s existing older, less efficient wide-body aircraft.

While Air Canada began using the Boeing 787 aircraft a decade ago, the new order will be a first for the fleet. These will be the airline’s first Boeing 787-10 aircraft, the largest model of the Dreamliner model and has the greatest capacity, with the ability to seat up to 336 passengers and hold 6,187 cubic ft of cargo volume.

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Air Canada has a fleet of 30 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner aircraft and eight Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner aircraft. Another two more Boeing 787-9 aircraft from a previous order are scheduled for delivery.

The new firm agreement to order the Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner aircraft includes options for a further 12 Boeing 787-10 aircraft, which brings Air Canada’s future potential Boeing 787-10 fleet size to up to 30 planes.

This order of Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner aircraft is scheduled to be delivered between late 2025 and early 2027.

The Dreamliner model offers a superior design for added passenger comfort, including vastly improved air quality, lower noise levels, and the largest dimmable windows of any commercial aircraft. The Boeing 787-10 is also highly fuel efficient, with up to 25% lower emissions per seat than the aircraft it replaces.

“Air Canada has made investing in the passenger experience a core priority. Our experience shows customers greatly enjoy flying on the Dreamliner, so we are pleased to offer them a larger version of this popular aircraft, which will premiere a new, state-of-the-art interior cabin design,” said Michael Rousseau, president and CEO of Air Canada, in a statement.

“As importantly, the 787 is highly fuel efficient and will generate operational savings and support our sustainability goals of reducing emissions.”

air canada boeing 787 dreamliner yvr vancouver international airport

Air Canada Boeing 787 Dreamliner at Vancouver International Airport (YVR). (Shutterstock)

boeing 787 dreamliner aircraft size comparison

Size comparison of all three versions of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner: 787-8 (top), 787-9 (middle), and 787-10 (bottom). (Boeing)

While all three models of the Dreamliner have the same height and wingspan, the longer 224-ft-long Boeing 787-10 has a range of 11,730 km, the lowest range in the family. In contrast, the 206-ft-long Boeing 787-9 has a range of 14,010 km with a capacity of up to 296 passengers, and the 186-ft-long Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner has a range of 13,530 km with a capacity of up to 248 passengers.

Air Canada has dedicated its existing Dreamliner fleet to primarily flying long-haul routes to destinations in Asia, Europe, and Australia. The use of the Boeing 787-10 is expected to enable the airline to continue to add international routes in new and existing markets.

Currently, according to aviation publication Simple Flying, the world’s longest routes using the Boeing 787-10 Dreamliner are United Airlines’ 10,147-km-long route between Chicago O’Hare and Tokyo Haneda and EVA Air’s 9,775-km-long route between Taipei and Seattle.

WestJet currently has a fleet of seven Boeing 787-9 aircraft, with no plans to grow the fleet of this model after cancelling its previous plans to order up to 20 of this aircraft. Instead, it is ordering more Boeing 787 MAX aircraft.

Air Canada is also receiving new Airbus A220 aircraft and planning to acquire 28 extra-long-range versions of the Airbus A321neo aircraft beginning in 2025.

Last year, Air Canada announced it had finalized an order for 30 ES-30 electric-hybrid aircraft from Sweden’s Heart Aerospace for short-haul routes. The 30-seat, lithium battery-powered planes have a zero-emission range of 200 km, with the ability to extend the range to up to 800 km if generator-supplemented power is used and with fewer passengers flying. These battery planes are expected to enter service in 2028.

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