Air Canada (tsx: AC.A, tsx: AC.B) is Canada's largest airline and flag carrier. The airline, founded in 1936, provides scheduled and charter air transportation for passengers and cargo to 160 destinations worldwide. Its largest hub is Toronto Pearson International Airport in Ontario. Air Canada is the world's 8th largest passenger airline by fleet size, and the airline is a founding member of Star Alliance, an alliance of 21 member airlines formed in 1997. Air Canada's corporate headquarters are located in Montreal, Quebec, since its move from Winnipeg, Manitoba, in 1949. The airline's parent company is the publicly traded firm ACE Aviation Holdings.

Canada's national airline originated from the Canadian federal government's 1936 creation of Trans-Canada Airlines (TCA), which began operating its first transcontinental routes in 1938. In 1965, TCA was renamed Air Canada following government approval. Following the 1980s deregulation of the Canadian airline market, the airline was privatized in 1988. In 2001, Air Canada acquired its largest rival, Canadian Airlines. In 2006, 34 million people flew with Air Canada. The following year, Air Canada celebrated its 70th anniversary.

Air Canada operates a fleet of Boeing 777, Boeing 767, and Airbus A330 wide-body jetliners on long-haul routes, and utilizes Airbus A320 family aircraft, including the A319, A320, and A321 variations and Embraer E170/E190 family aircraft on short-haul routes. The carrier's subsidiaries include Air Canada Cargo, ground support services, and regional airline partners, including Air Canada Jazz (which is now completely spun-off) and Air Canada Jetz. Air Canada also provides vacation packages to over 90 destinations via Air Canada Vacations. Together with its regional carriers, Canada's national carrier operates on average more than 1,500 scheduled flights a day.

Trans-Canada Airlines

Passenger operations began on 1 September 1937, with an Electra carrying two passengers and mail from Vancouver to Seattle, a $14.20 round trip. On 1 July 1938, TCA hired its first flight attendants.Mills, Albert J, Mills, Jean Helms. Masculinity and the Making of Trans-Canada Air Lines, 1937-1940: A Feminist Poststructuralist Account. Canadian Journal of Administrative Sciences, March 2006. 1 Date accessed: 18 October 2007 Transcontinental routes from Montreal to Vancouver began on 1 April 1939, using 12 Lockheed L-14 Super Electras and six Lockheed L-18 Lodestars. By January 1940 the airline had grown to about 500 employees.

In 1942, Canadian Pacific Airlines suggested merging with TCA. Prime Minister Mackenzie King rejected the proposal and introduced legislation regulating TCA as the only airline in Canada allowed to provide transcontinental flights. With the increase in air travel after World War II, CP Air was granted one coast-to-coast flight, and a few international routes.