VANCOUVER — Today marks the day Air Canada inaugurates flight AC72 from Vancouver to Delhi, the only nonstop flight that links Vancouver and the Indian subcontinent.

“We are delighted to inaugurate our second route between Canada and India right in time for Diwali celebrations. Our non-stop flights from our Asia-Pacific Vancouver hub feature 787-9 Dreamliner service and offer the shortest elapsed flying time from Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Seattle, Portland and Los Angeles to the Indian subcontinent,” said Benjamin Smith, President, Passenger Airlines at Air Canada. “Our non-stop flight, coupled with our streamlined and seamless connections process at YVR translates to a savings of 3-5 hours compared to itineraries with connections in Europe or Asia.

Smith added that passengers enjoy Indian-inspired dishes by celebrated Vancouver Chef Vikram Vij in all cabins of service on Air Canada’s Vancouver-Delhi and Toronto-Delhi flights, complementing the signature creations by Canadian Chef David Hawksworth in International Business Class. Also offered onboard is enhanced seatback in-flight entertainment at every seat, which includes Bollywood movies and multilingual art-house films.

Air Canada’s Vancouver-Delhi flights are operated with Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners, featuring the airline’s award-winning, three-cabin service configured with 30 International Business Class individual lie-flat suites, 21 Premium Economy seats and 247 Economy Class seats. Air Canada has optimized connections to and from the carrier’s extensive Western Canada and Western U.S. network through the airline’s Vancouver hub, and in Delhi, Star Alliance partner Air India offers connectivity across the Indian subcontinent.

The new Vancouver-Delhi service is part of Air Canada’s ongoing international expansion this year, following the recent launch of Vancouver-Brisbane, Vancouver-Dublin, Toronto-Seoul, Toronto-London Gatwick, Toronto-Prague, Toronto-Budapest, Toronto-Warsaw, Toronto-Glasgow, Montreal-Casablanca and Montreal-Lyon.

In 2017, the airline will launch new international services between Vancouver-Taipei (subject to government approvals), Vancouver-Nagoya, Toronto-Mumbai, Toronto-Berlin, Montreal-Shanghai, Montreal-Algiers (subject to government approvals) and Montreal-Marseille.