Canadian Airlines International

If you stood at the fence in Vancouver, Calgary or Toronto in the 1990s, you could not miss it: Canadian Airlines International, Air Canada’s gray rival with the red chevron on the tail. For almost 14 years it was Canada’s second major airline, a founding member of oneworld and, with DC-10s and 747-400s, also flew to Asia and Europe. It has not existed since 2001. Here you learn how Canadian came about, which aircraft it flew, how to recognize its liveries and how to classify old photos cleanly.

Canadian Airlines at a glance

Canadian Airlines International was a Canadian network airline based in Calgary that flew from 1987 to 2001. It was formed on March 27, 1987 through a takeover: western Canada’s Pacific Western Airlines bought the internationally active Canadian Pacific Air Lines, better known as CP Air. According to common reference works, Pacific Western paid around 300 million Canadian dollars for it and assumed debts of about 600 million. CP Air had already swallowed Eastern Provincial Airways from Atlantic Canada and the Québec-based Nordair shortly before – so several companies flowed together in the new airline.

For the first time, Air Canada faced a truly equal competitor. Canadian operated hubs in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto-Pearson and Montréal-Dorval, plus important stations in Edmonton, Halifax and Ottawa. At its peak in 1996, according to widely cited figures, the airline carried around 11.9 million passengers to over 160 destinations in 17 countries.

Its end came in two steps: in December 1999 Air Canada took control, and the merger was completed on January 1, 2001.

Codes and callsign

• IATA code CP: Canadian took over the code from CP Air. It appeared on tickets, departure boards and baggage tags.
• ICAO code CDN: the three-letter code for air traffic control flight plans.
• Callsign CANADIAN: this is how the crews identified themselves on the radio – CP Air had still used “EMPRESS.”
• Registrations C-F and C-G: All aircraft were registered in Canada. How registrations are built in general is explained in the guide Understanding aircraft registrations.

Because the code CP already existed before 1987, the date is what helps most with old schedules, tickets or boarding passes: a CP flight number from before March 1987 belongs to CP Air, one from the years afterward to Canadian.

The history: from the merger to the end

1987: two airlines become one

What is remarkable about the 1987 merger: here a mainly regional airline took over the internationally active CP Air. Pacific Western from Calgary brought a dense network in western Canada, CP Air from Vancouver the international routes across the Pacific, to Europe and to South America. The logo was also built from both worlds: the five gray stripes came from the Canadian Pacific livery and stood for five continents, while the red chevron was derived from the Pacific Western logo.

1989: Wardair joins

Two years later Canadian took over the legendary charter and scheduled airline Wardair from Max Ward. The purchase brought one thing above all: routes to Britain and Europe that Canadian had long been pursuing. Modern Airbus A310s also joined the fleet with Wardair. The Canadian Armed Forces bought several of them in 1992, and the rest left the fleet over the course of the 1990s – on long haul the Boeing 767-300ER took over their role.

The 1990s: debt, partners and crises

The industry downturn of 1991 hit Canadian hard. The airline streamlined operations and restructured debt of over 700 million dollars. A cash injection from AMR, the parent company of American Airlines, was decisive. American eventually held 25 percent of Canadian – the Canadian rules on foreign ownership allowed no more.

In 1996 CEO Kevin Benson announced a four-year turnaround plan. But the Asian financial crisis from 1997 caused traffic on the previously lucrative Pacific routes to collapse. Canadian thus fell into heavy losses again.

1999: founding member of oneworld

On September 21, 1998, five airlines presented a new alliance in London, which launched on February 1, 1999: oneworld. Besides American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific, Qantas and Canadian itself were on board. For the Canadians this was a logical step – with American as a shareholder and Cathay and Qantas as partners in the Pacific, the alliance matched their network exactly. How the three big alliances differ is covered in the overview Star Alliance, oneworld and SkyTeam.

Shortly before, in January 1999, Canadian presented a new livery: “Proud Wings” with a Canada goose on the tail and new titles. The big repaint never happened, though.

1999 to 2001: the takeover battle

The year 1999 decided the future of Canadian air travel. In August Air Canada proposed buying Canadian’s international routes and turning the rest into a feeder – Canadian declined. Shortly afterward the holding company Onex, backed by AMR, submitted an offer to take over both airlines and merge them. Canadian’s board stood behind it. Air Canada countered in October with its own offer.

The decision came in court: on November 5, 1999, a judge in Québec declared the Onex offer inadmissible because it violated the 10 percent cap on individual shareholders of Air Canada. Onex withdrew. On December 8, 1999 Air Canada took control, and after clearance by the competition authority Canadian officially became a subsidiary of Air Canada on December 23, 1999.

On June 1, 2000, Canadian left oneworld. By October 2000 systems and staff were largely integrated, and on January 1, 2001 the merger was completed. Air Canada then held over 90 percent of the Canadian domestic market – competition afterward came mainly from younger airlines such as WestJet.

The fleet at a glance

At the end, according to common reference works, Canadian flew 97 jets. The table shows this final state, supplemented by important earlier types.

Type	Number at the end	Use	Spotter tip
Boeing 737-200 / -200 Advanced	43	Domestic, USA, also as a combi	Long, slender engines under the wing
Boeing 767-300ER	23	Long haul to Asia and Europe	Twinjet with a wide fuselage
McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30	14	Long haul	Third engine in the vertical stabilizer
Airbus A320-200	13	Domestic and transcontinental	Only Airbus type at the end
Boeing 747-400	4	Long haul, mainly Asia	Long upper deck, winglets
Airbus A310-300	– (until the 1990s)	From the Wardair legacy	Several went to the Armed Forces in 1992

The Boeing 737-200 was the domestic workhorse. Some aircraft flew as combis with cargo and passengers in one cabin – ideal for destinations in the north. How to tell the 737 generations apart is shown in the guide Boeing 737 Original, Classic, NG and MAX.

On long haul Canadian flew the McDonnell Douglas DC-10 in the -30 version, the Boeing 767-300ER and the Boeing 747-400. Domestically the Airbus A320 complemented the 737. The Airbus A310 dated from the Wardair era.

What happened after the merger

• A320s, 737-200s, 767-300ERs and 747-400s passed to Air Canada or later to its subsidiaries.
• 737-200s and 747-400s were retired at Air Canada in 2004.
• 767-300ERs still flew at Air Canada for almost two more decades, some afterward as freighters for Air Canada Cargo.
• DC-10-30s were not taken over by Air Canada – they were sold or parked by the time the merger was completed.

That makes former Canadian jets rewarding research subjects: a registration you photographed in Canadian gray in 1998 may turn up again in your archive years later in Air Canada colors.

The regional partners

Like many network airlines, Canadian had a dense feeder network of subsidiaries and partner companies:

• Canadian Regional Airlines (1993–2001): wholly owned subsidiary, formed from Time Air and Ontario Express, among others, with destinations in western and central Canada and the USA.
• Inter-Canadien: subsidiary of Canadian Regional for Québec as well as connections to Ottawa and Toronto.
• Calm Air: 45 percent owned by Canadian Regional, operating in Manitoba, northwestern Ontario and the Northwest Territories.
• Air Atlantic: partner for Atlantic Canada.
• Canadian North: founded in 1989 for the north, sold in 1998 – still active today as Canadian North.

The regional fleets included Dash 8s, ATR 42s, BAe 146s and the Fokker F28 Fellowship, among others. If you want to identify turboprops reliably, you will find help in the guide Telling the ATR and Dash 8 apart.

How to recognize Canadian

The chevron livery (1987 to 2001)

The best-known look is the 1987 livery: a color scheme of light gray, dark gray, navy blue and red modeled on the late Canadian Pacific livery. On the tail ran the five gray stripes, combined with the red chevron. On the fuselage were the “Canadian” titles, in which the “a” was often drawn as an arrowhead – hence the spelling “Canadi›n” that you find in forums and photo databases.

“Proud Wings” (from 1999)

From January 1999 the new livery with a Canada goose on the tail appeared. Because Canadian went to Air Canada shortly afterward, only a few aircraft received it. Photos with the goose therefore narrow the shot down closely to 1999 to 2001.

The transitional look (2000/2001)

Especially exciting for collectors: during the integration many aircraft wore the Air Canada maple leaf on the tail while the fuselage still said “Canadian.” Such hybrid liveries are typical merger traces – more in the guide Recognizing hybrid liveries.

Safety

According to the common reference works, there were no fatal accidents on flights of Canadian Airlines International. Known incidents involved rejected takeoffs: in October 1995 a Canadian aircraft overran the end of the runway in Vancouver after an aborted takeoff because of a compressor surge, and in September 1997 a crew in Beijing aborted takeoff after an engine fire. For accidents in Canadian regional aviation, pay close attention to which company operated the flight – partners and subsidiaries had their own operating certificates.

Canadian today: traces in archives and on site

Canadian has vanished from scheduled service since 2001. Even so, tracing it is worthwhile:

• Archive photos: Most Canadian sightings today are found in slide collections and photo databases. With registration and date you can classify every picture cleanly.
• Vancouver: The airport was the home of CP Air and an important hub of Canadian. Today you see Air Canada and WestJet there – good places to take photos are shown in the spot guide Larry Berg Flight Path Park.
• Toronto: At Toronto Pearson Airport, Air Canada and Canadian once fought their direct competition.
• Ottawa: If you want to experience Canadian aviation history in a museum, you will find it at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum.

Common mix-ups

• Equating Canadian with CP Air – CP Air was the predecessor until 1987, and Canadian only came about through the takeover by Pacific Western.
• Confusing Canadian with Canadian North – the Arctic airline was a subsidiary only until 1998 and still flies under its own name today.
• Taking every maple leaf for pure Air Canada – in 2000/2001 Canadian jets also wore the maple leaf, with “Canadian” on the fuselage.
• Looking for Canadian in Star Alliance – it was a oneworld founding member, and only through Air Canada did its legacy end up in the other alliance.
• Taking the A310s for Canadian’s own orders – they joined the fleet with Wardair.
• Always attributing the CP flight number to Canadian – before 1987 the code belonged to CP Air.

Conclusion

Canadian Airlines International was Canada’s great alternative to Air Canada. Grown together from Pacific Western, CP Air, Eastern Provincial, Nordair and Wardair, it flew with 737-200s, DC-10s, 767s and 747-400s from Calgary across Canada and over the Pacific. As a founding member of oneworld it stood at the peak of its international connectivity in 1999 – and was taken over by Air Canada in the same year. For you as a spotter, Canadian lives on in slide collections, in transitional liveries and in registrations that kept flying at Air Canada for a long time.