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18 TH E WINNIPEG INVE STOR One of North America's top airlines, Air Canada has long been synonymous with quality aviation standards. In fact, the airline has been awarded the title of 'Best Airline in North America' for 2018 by Skytrax – a distinction won by Air Canada seven times since 2010. With an extensive global network with passenger service to 64 airports in Canada and another 220 worldwide, Air Canada operates an average of 1,600 daily scheduled flights across six continents – serving approximately 48 million customers per Winnipeg scheduled daily flights Scheduled daily flights Customers served annually $120 million Winnipeg employment 28 700 1,600 48 million Local spending (2017) Air Canada year. From Manitoba alone, approximately 10,000 flights take off annually from Winnipeg, which represents 885,000 seats. Approximately 700 Air Canada employees work in Winnipeg – making the company a significant city employer. In addition, one of Air Canada's executive team members, Vice President and Controller Chris Isford, oversees all the company's accounting and finance teams from his Winnipeg office. Winnipeg is home to many other high-skill jobs through Air Canada, including airline and airport operations teams. Recently, the airline expanded its maintenance operations in Winnipeg, creating 14 new high-skill positions. All told, Air Canada's local annual operating expenses total over $120 million in Winnipeg alone. Winnipeg is not just an employment hub for Air Canada; the airline is also a proud community sponsor, including their support for the Winnipeg Jets, Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, and 13 other local charity and non-profit groups in 2018. A particular passion for the company is the Winnipeg chapter of Dreams Take Flight, which flies ill and disadvantaged children to Disney for a day, with aircraft and crew supplied by Air Canada. Throughout its global network, Winnipeg remains a key centre of Air Canada's operations. A Top-Flight Company "Air Canada has a long and close connection with Winnipeg, which was one of the first destinations in our network 80 years ago. We maintain a large presence in the city and Winnipeg is Air Canada's global accounting centre, and we take great pride in our involvement in the community. We are also pleased to offer residents direct service to Canada's major cities and easy connections through our global network to virtually anywhere in the world." Chris Isford, Vice President and Controller, Air Canada courtesy Air Canada