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TORONTO — Canadian leisure carrier Air Transat (TS) has launched its brand new route between Toronto Pearson (YYZ) and Berlin Brandenburg (BER) airports.
The new flight, the first direct service between Canada and the German capital since 2023, will operate twice weekly on Thursdays and Sundays using the airline’s Airbus A321LR.
The 7-hour-long outbound leg, TS418, leaves Toronto at 21:05 local time and arrives the next morning in Berlin at 10:55. The return, TS419, starts back west at 13:45 after a nearly 3-hour layover and comes back at YYZ at 16:35, taking about eight and a half hours.
“As the sole airline offering non-stop service from Canada to the German capital, we are excited to provide travellers with a direct and enriching way to experience one of Europe’s most vibrant cities,” said Sebastian Ponce, Air Transat’s Chief Revenue Officer, in a press release.
“This route not only strengthens our European presence out of Toronto but also underscores our commitment to creating meaningful connections across the Atlantic.”
The distance alone is also a feat for the A321LR. At 6,498 km (3,509 nm), YYZ-BER is beaten out only by SAS’s (SK) Copenhagen (CPH) to Washington (IAD) service for the longest Airbus A321LR flight by a distance of only 58 km (31 nm).
Transatlantic Summer
The new service will run from June 19, 2025, until the end of the IATA summer season, with the last outbound flight departing on October 23, 2025. According to Kurush Minocher, interim Chief Commercial Officer, Toronto Pearson. “Last year, 15,000 people travelled between Toronto and Berlin, all requiring a stopover on their journey.”
Despite this, TS will only offer 7,363 seats this summer as the new route establishes itself in the market and the carrier awaits the arrival of its three A321XLRs later this year.
“We are delighted to welcome Air Transat as a new airline partner at BER," added Aletta von Massenbach, Chief Executive Officer of Berlin Brandenburg Airport. "The new route directly connects the Berlin Brandenburg region with Toronto and offers attractive onward flight options.”
In 2022, TS and Porter Airlines (PD) signed a codeshare agreement, adding connectivity between the two carriers at their hubs in Toronto. The deal has since expanded to include 45% of Air Transat’s total network capacity per seat mile, and 75% for Porter’s, alongside interlining and loyalty programme benefits.
Air Transat currently operates a fleet of 43 Airbus aircraft, comprising eight A321-200s, 19 A321LRs, 14 A330-200s, and two A330-300s, with orders for a trio of A321XLRs scheduled for delivery starting this year.
The carrier specializes in seasonal leisure travel, to the Caribbean and Latin America in the winter and Europe in the summer, serving 26 countries from its gateways in Eastern Canada.
Featured image: Air Transat
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