Passengers left in the lurch as Air Canada fleet grounded over labour strife
Major Canadian airports warned travellers not come to the airport unless they had a flight with another carrier after Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge suspended operations earlier today when the flight attendants when on strike.
But dozens of passengers who had received notice that their flights were cancelled showed up to Toronto Pearson International Airport Saturday morning regardless, many looking for information from Air Canada staff about alternative options.
Tanya Baron and her family are trying to get home to Saskatoon, but she fought tears as she explained the airline has yet to provide them with rebooking options and she was getting the runaround.
Sandra Caputi, who was flying home to Thunder Bay, Ont., after spending a few weeks in Greece, is one of the lucky ones to grab a competitor flight from Porter at Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport to take her home this afternoon.
In Montreal, Bonnie Bradley says with no options available until Wednesday, she decided to book a car and drive home to Winnipeg after spending a 10-day holiday in Newfoundland.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 16, 2025.
The Canadian Press
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Air Canada passengers still scrambling to rebook as labour dispute grounds flights
Air passengers are still scrambling to rebook their flights home as a labour dispute between Air Canada and its flight attendants continues to ground planes around the world. James Hart and Zahara Virani came to Toronto from Calgary for what they thought would be a fun weekend. But now they're having to miss work and pay $2,600 to fly with another airline after their Air Canada flight was cancelled amid the strike and lockout that began Saturday. Virani says she doesn't blame the flight attendants, and is disappointed in Air Canada for not reaching a deal with its workers. The union representing more than 10,000 flight attendants says the workers plan to remain on strike even after the Canada Industrial Relations Board ordered both parties back to work by 2 p.m. ET today. Air Canada had said it would restart flights later today, but it is unclear how the latest news from the union will impact that plan. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 17, 2025. The Canadian Press
The Hill
8 hours ago
- The Hill
Air Canada to resume flights after government shuts down strike
Air Canada will resume flights on Sunday after the northern neighbor's government intervened to end the workers' strike that halted hundreds of flights this weekend. The airline said in a statement that the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) directed Air Canada to resume airline operations and ordered all Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flight attendants to return to work by 2 p.m. EDT on Sunday. The CIRB was acting on a Saturday directive from the Canadian Minister of Jobs and Families, Patty Hajdu, who moved to end the strike and require final binding arbitration to break a contract impasse. The order extended the current contract until a new agreement is reached. Approximately 10,000 flight attendants walked off the job on Saturday, for the first time since 1985, as progress toward a new contract stalled after several months of negotiations. The move stranded more than 100,000 travelers around the world and resulted in the suspension of approximately 700 daily flights. The airline began canceling flights on Friday, in anticipation of the strike. The airline said in a statement that it will resume flights on Sunday evening but that it expects further flight cancellations over the next seven to 10 days 'until the schedule is stabilized.'
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Air Canada to Resume Flights Sunday After Government Ends Strike
(Bloomberg) -- Air Canada will begin resuming operations on Sunday after the government moved to end a strike by more than 10,000 flight attendants that had led to hundreds of cancellations. The US-Canadian Road Safety Gap Is Getting Wider Festivals and Parades Are Canceled Amid US Immigration Anxiety A Photographer's Pipe Dream: Capturing New York's Vast Water System Princeton Plans New Budget Cuts as Pressure From Trump Builds A London Apartment Tower With Echoes of Victorian Rail and Ancient Rome Flights will resume Sunday evening with a gradual ramp-up over the coming days, the Montreal-based airline said in a statement. Still, it expects to take several days before operations return to normal. The Canada Industrial Relations Board has directed Air Canada to resume airline operations and for all Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flight attendants to return to work by 2:00 p.m. in Montreal, according to the statement early Sunday. The move came after Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu directed the independent CIRB to order a resumption of operations and to impose binding arbitration to resolve a standoff over contract negotiations. Some 10,500 flight attendants walked off the job early Saturday after pay talks between the union and the country's biggest airline fell through. That led Air Canada to ground hundreds of flights and lock out flight attendants, disrupting some 130,000 passengers a day during the summer holiday season. What Declining Cardboard Box Sales Tell Us About the US Economy Americans Are Getting Priced Out of Homeownership at Record Rates How Syrian Immigrants Are Boosting Germany's Economy Bessent on Tariffs, Deficits and Embracing Trump's Economic Plan Dubai's Housing Boom Is Stoking Fears of Another Crash ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
