CHICAGO — American Airlines has set its sights on western Canada with the launch of new scheduled service between Vancouver (YVR) and Calgary (YYC) and its Chicago O’Hare (ORD) hub.

Flights from YVR will launch on May 4 and will operate year-round using 160-seat Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Flights from YYC will operate on a summer-seasonal basis, starting on June 7 and using 76-seat Embraer E-175 aircraft.

Both new services will be available to book from Dec. 4, and will offer a Business Class cabin, Main Cabin Extra seating and inflight Wi-Fi.

YVR-ORD departs from Vancouver at 11:00 p.m., and arrives at ORD at 5:14 a.m. the next day. YYC-ORD departs from Calgary at 1:20 p.m. and arrives at ORD at 5:40 p.m.

In addition, American will make several capacity increases in Canada next year due to high demand. Effective May 4, it will increase from two to three daily flights between YYZ and Washington (DCA), and also between Ottawa (YOW) and Philadelphia (PHL).

American will also extend its popular summer-seasonal service between Quebec City (YQB) and PHL for an extra month, running from June 7 until Nov. 3, 2018.

Starting Feb. 15, the carrier will increase from four to five daily flights between YYZ and New York LaGuardia (LGA), and also upgrade two of these frequencies from E-145 to E-175 aircraft. The larger E-175s provide 26 additional seats, a Business Class cabin and Wi-Fi connectivity.

Lastly, American’s winter-seasonal service from Edmonton (YEG) to Phoenix (PHX) will increase to two daily flights between Dec. 16 and April 2 for the first time.

“American has proudly served Canada for more than 75 years and the country remains a key part of our growing global network,” said Richard Muise, American’s director of Canadian Airport Operations. “These new flights, combined with additional capacity across the country, reflect the growing demand for travel over the border in both directions.”