Air Canada will fly four times a week from Heathrow to Ottawa from 31 March 2025. The airline will use a wide-body Boeing 787 for the service, which will run until 25 October.

Flights will operate from Heathrow on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, and offer business and premium economy cabins.

The airline’s executive vice-president – revenue and network planning, Mark Galardo, said delivery of new narrow-body Airbus aircraft could mean the route was viable year-round.

"We are looking forward to the future delivery of Air Canada’s new Airbus A321XLR fleet,” he said. “The economics, optimum cabin size and range of the XLR which is expected to begin arriving in late 2025 will enable us to consider operating this important international route with greater frequencies and potentially with year-round service.”

Air Canada added it had designated Ottawa as a test location for trialling new initiatives “designed to improve the customer journey”, but did not specify these.

The UK is Ottawa’s top overseas market, however the city currently has no direct service from Heathrow.