Berlin Brandenburg Airport has a new long-haul route. From today, Canada’s largest airline, Air Canada, is connecting the capital region with the city of Montréal. The new route strengthens the airport’s connections to North America and will operate three times a week, on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Air Canada uses its Montréal hub to provide numerous connecting flights within North America. The connection is available in the flight schedule from BER until 6 September. Flights for summer 2027 are already available for booking. Air Canada will then operate the route four times a week from early June to mid-October.
While today’s inaugural flight to Canada departed from Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) on a Boeing 787-8, modern Airbus A321XLR (Extra Long Range) aircraft will come into service from 19 July onwards. This marks the first time that this new aircraft type will be deployed regularly on a long-haul route to Germany. The A321 XLR has 182 seats, 14 of which are in Business Class and 168 in Economy Class. The flight time from BER is 8 hours and 40 minutes; the journey in the opposite direction takes one hour less.
“We are delighted to welcome Air Canada to BER. With Montréal, BER is not only gaining another attractive destination in Canada, but also an interesting long-haul route,” says Aletta von Massenbach, Chief Executive Officer of Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH. “At the same time, we are delighted that an Airbus A321 XLR will be used on this route for the first time in scheduled service. This shows how innovative technologies are helping to make international connections more sustainable and simultaneously more economically attractive. This new aircraft model offers considerable potential for the further development of air transport at BER.”
“We are delighted to launch our new direct service between Berlin and Montréal today, marking the first-ever Airbus A321 XLR operation from Berlin Brandenburg Airport and in Germany. As Air Canada continues to expand its network, the A321 XLR aircraft is enabling us to connect new transatlantic markets efficiently while delivering the comfort and reliability our customers expect”, says Rocky Lo, Managing Director International Sales Air Canada. “As one of Air Canada’s largest hubs, Montréal offers travellers access to one of North America’s most vibrant and culturally rich cities, while also providing seamless onward connectivity across Canada, North America and beyond.”
“This direct link gives wings to the relationship between Québec and Germany. By bringing Montréal and Berlin closer together, it will help further strengthen already rich partnerships in the economic, cultural, academic, and institutional spheres, while enabling new projects to take flight”, comments Geneviève Rolland, Québec’s Delegat-General for Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
“The new direct route between Montréal and Berlin sends a strong signal to the growing Canadian market and is a boon for Berlin’s tourism industry. “It enhances Berlin’s international accessibility and opens up further potential for visitors from Canada and across North America,” says Dr Jürgen Amann, Managing Director of visitBerlin.
“Montréal is one of North America’s leading centres for the creative industries, just as Berlin is in Europe. The direct link between these two creative hubs is, therefore, a truly forward-looking connection, particularly for the games, AI, deep tech and cultural sectors. “Our successful efforts show that the ‘Connectivity Board BER,’ established in 2025 and comprising the airport, visitBerlin, the Cottbus Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Berlin Chamber of Commerce and Industry, is on the right track to further enhance the international connectivity that is essential for the economy,” emphasises Robert Rückel, Vice-President of the Berlin Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
“The new direct route to Montréal strengthens the international connectivity of the Berlin Brandenburg region and links BER with one of the world’s leading centres for the aerospace industry.” For businesses in Brandenburg, this opens up further opportunities for collaboration and market access in key sectors of the future. Canada is a major trading partner: Brandenburg’s trade volume stands at approximately 1.2 billion euros, and exports have been growing steadily for years. Good global connectivity remains strategically crucial for the metropolitan area – the new link makes a valuable contribution to this,” says Jens Warnken, President of the Cottbus Chamber of Industry and Commerce, speaking on behalf of the State Working Group of Brandenburg’s Chambers of Industry and Commerce.
