Air Canada Strike Looms: Canada–US Travel at Risk
The strike set to be launched by Air Canada flight attendants will significantly impact travel between Canada and the United States. After negotiations with the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) reached a deadlock, the airline announced that it will begin cancelling flights from Thursday, ahead of the planned work stoppage expected to start on Saturday.
According to CBC, the earliest possible time workers could walk off the job is 00:58 (local time) on Saturday. CNN reported that Air Canada will gradually wind down its operations over the next three days, with all Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flights to be completely cancelled on Saturday. The airline stated that it could take up to a week for full service to resume.
Air Canada, which carries around 130,000 passengers daily, said its Express flights will not be affected by the strike. However, the action will cause widespread disruptions, particularly on Canada–US routes.
In light of the seriousness of the situation, Air Canada’s Star Alliance partner United Airlines has issued a travel waiver for nine Canadian airports: Calgary, Edmonton, Halifax, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec City, Toronto, Vancouver, and Winnipeg. United is offering free itinerary changes without change fees or fare differences for United flights between 12–27 August 2025.
Air Canada is also allowing passengers scheduled to travel between 15–18 August to reschedule their flights for dates between 21 August and 12 September at no extra cost, provided their tickets were purchased by 13 August.
