Up to 76 A320 family aircraft operated by Air Canada will undergo a “significant” flight deck upgrade following an agreement signed with Airbus.
In the new deal announced on April 10, 2024, Airbus revealed that Air Canada’s A320 family aircraft will go through a “major cockpit and avionics system upgrade package” to aid fleet modernization.
The multi-year upgrade program includes Enhanced Electronic Instrument System or EEIS2, Head Up Display (HUD) and many other avionics functions.
“These key enhancements to the avionics on our Airbus A320 family will result in a modernized flight deck environment consistent with our other fleets, as well as additional capabilities comparable to the latest generation of aircraft, such as the A321XLR that Air Canada will be introducing to its fleet,” Murray Strom, Senior Vice President, Flight Operations and Maintenance at Air Canada, said.
HUD will improve situational awareness and bring better airport accessibility in bad weather conditions.
Airbus said that EEIS2 displays offer “much higher reliability” and enable the latest functions, while also improving pilot comfort with a high-resolution LCD screen that provides better information and offers new system capabilities and features.
“HUDs on the A320 family will further increase fleet harmonization across all our aircraft types, and the EEIS2 displays presenting enhanced data will bring additional operational efficiencies and reliability,” Strom added.
SBAS Landing System, FMS Landing System and GBAS Landing System will also contribute to faster and greater airport accessibility.
‘’With this combination of improvements, Air Canada is getting ahead of the requirements and latest standards available on the market,” Cristina Aguilar, SVP Customer Services at Airbus, said. ‘’We are thankful to Air Canada for their trust in Airbus with this significant A320 fleet upgrades agreement.”