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Air Canada names in-flight chief Turner to lead cargo

Airline expands freighter network to more European destinations

Ground workers unload a shipment from an Air Canada passenger jet. (Photo: Air Canada)

Air Canada on Wednesday appointed Jon Turner to replace Jason Berry, who is leaving to help run a small U.S. regional airline, as vice president of cargo.

Turner is currently vice president of in-flight services and will take on the cargo role effective Feb. 18.

Berry surprised the airfreight community this month when he resigned to be vice president of operations at Horizon Air, a subsidiary of Seattle-based Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK). Sources said his decision was based on family considerations. Berry will return to the Seattle area where he lived for many years prior to joining Air Canada two years ago.

Jon Turner (Photo: Air Canada)

Turner has moved up the leadership ranks at Air Canada (OTCUS: ACDVF), gaining expertise in global strategy, operations and customer service. He also served as vice president, maintenance and engineering, with responsibility for the airline’s aircraft acquisition, fleet management and airworthiness. He also was president and CEO of Sky Regional, a Canadian airline that operated under the Air Canada Express brand, and before that as executive vice president at Air Transat.


Turner became president of operations for leisure carrier Air Canada Rouge in June 2019 before assuming the helm of Air Canada’s inflight service branch. 

Air Canada turned to a Canadian native to head the cargo division after previously hiring Americans Berry and Tim Strauss, who now runs Miami-based Amerijet.

Berry’s departure comes as Air Canada makes a major strategic shift into the all-cargo sector. He was the architect of the cargo expansion, and industry experts say the company could experience some transition challenges with the change in leadership, especially since Turner doesn’t have direct cargo experience.

Turner will oversee how to maximize revenue opportunities for Air Canada’s three Boeing 767 converted freighters, as well as seven more on the way, plus two Boeing 777 freighters scheduled for delivery in 2024. 


On Monday, Air Canada said it will begin scheduled freighter service to Liege, Belgium, next month, with flights to Basel, Switzerland, slated to begin in April.

The carrier will operate two cargo flights per week to Liege, with service increasing to three flights per week later in the year. Basel, a major pharmaceutical hub, will get two flights per week. The flights will originate in Toronto, where Air Canada has a recently expanded temperature-controlled facility, with a stop in Halifax, Nova Scotia. 

The new routes are in addition to the recent start of service to Dallas, Atlanta and Bogota, Colombia, as Air Canada Cargo continues to expand its freighter network.

Click here for more FreightWaves/American Shipper stories by Eric Kulisch.

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Eric Kulisch

Eric is the Supply Chain and Air Cargo Editor at FreightWaves. An award-winning business journalist with extensive experience covering the logistics sector, Eric spent nearly two years as the Washington, D.C., correspondent for Automotive News, where he focused on regulatory and policy issues surrounding autonomous vehicles, mobility, fuel economy and safety. He has won two regional Gold Medals and a Silver Medal from the American Society of Business Publication Editors for government and trade coverage, and news analysis. He was voted best for feature writing and commentary in the Trade/Newsletter category by the D.C. Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. He won Environmental Journalist of the Year from the Seahorse Freight Association in 2014 and was the group's 2013 Supply Chain Journalist of the Year. In December 2022, Eric was voted runner up for Air Cargo Journalist by the Seahorse Freight Association. As associate editor at American Shipper Magazine for more than a decade, he wrote about trade, freight transportation and supply chains. He has appeared on Marketplace, ABC News and National Public Radio to talk about logistics issues in the news. Eric is based in Vancouver, Washington. He can be reached for comments and tips at ekulisch@freightwaves.com