Air Transat made a significant announcement yesterday with its new routes to Rio de Janeiro (GIG) launching in February next year. Using its fleet of Airbus A330s, the brand-new flights are a milestone for the carrier as it has never operated to Brazil before. As far as we are aware, this is also the first time Air Transat has flown this far south.
The carrier revealed a new flight from Toronto and one from Montreal. The one from Toronto will be its longest ever route overall, while Montreal is a close third. Toronto bumps its recently announced Istanbul flight down to second place in terms of distance, although the Turkish connection still wins when it comes to flight time.
New Routes From Toronto & Montreal
Photo: Great Circle Mapper
The Canadian leisure airline’s newest announcement will see it launch a total of three weekly flights to Rio de Janeiro. The services will be split between Toronto Pearson International Airport and Montréal–Trudeau International Airport. One weekly flight will operate from Montreal on Thursdays, and the remaining pair of flights will be from Toronto on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
The flight from Toronto will launch first, on February 4. Flights from Montreal will begin a day later on February 5 next year. The carrier said in a statement that this brings its total number of new routes this winter to 14, including flights from Toronto to Georgetown (GEO) and Montreal to Valencia (VLC) to name a couple of examples. The company’s Chief Revenue Officer, Sebastian Ponce, said:
“This enriched winter schedule marks an important milestone in the evolution of our network, By targeting markets we have never served before, we are pursuing a clear diversification strategy toward destinations that Canadians are eager to explore, supported by growing connectivity through our expanding network of partners.”
New Longest Flights By Distance
Photo: The Bold Bureau | Shutterstock
The two new routes top the list for the carrier’s longest nonstop flights. Its new top three list also includes its freshly announced route to Istanbul from Toronto, beginning in December this year, two times per week. All of its remaining longest routes by distance are to Europe, including the likes of Athens, Lamezia Terme, and Zagreb. According to information from aviation analytics firm Cirium, these are the carrier’s longest flights:
Miles (km)
Route
Frequency
5,124 (8,246)
Toronto – Rio de Janeiro
2 weekly
5,091 (8,193)
Toronto – Istanbul
2 weekly
5,075 (8,167)
Montreal – Rio de Janeiro
1 weekly
5,063 (8,148)
Toronto – Athens*
1 weekly
4,755 (7,652)
Montreal – Athens*
1 weekly
4,703 (7,569)
Toronto – Lamezia Terme*
1 weekly
4,414 (7,104)
Toronto – Rome*
5 weekly
4,407 (7,092)
Toronto – Zagreb*
1 weekly
4,270 (6,872)
Toronto – Venice*
1 weekly
4,103 (6,603)
Montreal – Rome*
5 weekly
*only operates summer seasonally
Air Transat also flies to Lima, Peru, from its two main Canadian cities as well. The services are long, but not long enough to make the top 10 list. Services from Montreal span 3,961 miles, while flights from Toronto reach 3,836 miles. Elsewhere in South America, this winter Air Transat will fly to Medellín via Cartenga.
Air Transat says that the new flights form part of its broader winter expansion which will see it add a total of 14 new routes. It says its winter schedule represents a year-on-year capacity increase of 6%.
Not The Longest By Flight Time
Photo: Heather Dunbar | Shutterstock
The new Rio routes are not the longest by flight duration. Istanbul leads the way in that respect it seems, although booking has not fully opened for the Brazilian flights so the exact timings are not certain.
I have listed the flight times below for the longer leg of the Istanbul route which is the westbound service, as well as the duration for the new Rio services. Currently, on the outbound leg seems to be visible on booking systems.
Istanbul-Toronto: 11h 20m
Montreal-Rio de Janeiro: 10h 20m
Toronto-Rio de Janeiro: 10h 15m
It is worth noting that despite Montreal having a shorter overall distance, it ends up being longer in terms of flight time. On a more significant note, the fact that Istanbul is shorter by distance but almost an hour longer by duration demonstrates the impact of things like wind patterns on aircraft.
Hub(s)
Montréal–Trudeau International Airport
Year Founded
1986
CEO
Annick Guérard
