with B.A.
09JUL09

AC Rolls Out Olympics Themed Aircraft

As Calin Rovinescu, President & CEO of Air Canada said, “We like to do things on a big scale.” And big it was, in the form of a Boeing 777-300ER. Making its debut at the Air Canada Operations Centre in Vancouver, this aircraft’s body features scenes from Canada’s landscape mixed with Olympics themed illustrations from nose to tail. The images depicted on the aircraft embody the Vancouver 2010 Look of the Games which includes a fusion of Canada's natural, urban and cultural elements and features colours and shapes representing ocean, forest, mountains and sky.

The plane's sport illustrations include snowboard parallel giant slalom, ice hockey and cross-country skiing on one side, and alpine skiing, ice sledge hockey and ski jumping on the other side. The overall design for the aircraft was created by VANOC's in house design team working in partnership with Air Canada.

The presence of several Olympians and Olympic hopefuls for the upcoming 2010 Games added to the excitement of the event. For these and other top-notch athletes, Rovinescu took the opportunity to announce the airline’s “Elite Podium” program. This program offers special travelling benefits such as seat/class upgrades, priority check-in and increased baggage allowance to ensure that athletes arrive in better condition for each competition.

Air Canada staff and family members joined the media and industry members for this launch. Other speakers included John Furlong, CEO, VANOC (the outfit responsible for organizing, financing and staging the Games) and Larry Berg, President & CEO, Vancouver Airport Authority, who gushed, “(The plane) will provide a stunning promotion for the Games.”

On hand to mingle with the crowd were the Games’ three mascots - Miga, a young sea bear that is part killer whale and part Kermode bear; Quatchi the sasquatch and Sumi the animal spirit who lives in the mountains of B.C. To add to the entertainment, some athletes, complete with skis and snowboards attached, took to showing off their practice twists and somersaults on a trampoline.

The “Olympics” plane will be used on international routes and rotated between Hong Kong, Tokyo, London and Frankfurt.

And in case you didn’t realize it, Air Canada is the official airline of the 2010 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games.  As John Furlong of VANOC put it, "Air Canada has been connecting the world to the Games since they became our official airline in 2007. Now they'll be flying our signature look across the country and internationally, a compelling visual reminder that these are Canada's Games in partnership with Canada's airline.”

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