Air Canada has resumed operations following a four-day strike by flight attendants, but its cargo division will continue operating a modified freighter schedule as the airline gradually works back to full capacity.
The strike, which ran from August 16–19, brought much of Air Canada’s network to a standstill, forcing Air Canada Cargo to implement contingency measures to safeguard up to 25% of volumes. These included a scaled-back freighter programme and the suspension of new bookings for certain speciality commodities, with the carrier warning that existing shipments could face delays or cancellations.
In its most recent customer update, Air Canada Cargo said it expects “several days before activities return to normal,” noting that some flights will be cancelled over the next seven to ten days until operations are fully stabilised. During this period, the company will maintain its modified freighter schedule, which includes temporary services to Europe to secure additional capacity.
“As passenger flights resume, our freighter schedule will also return to normal, and temporary restrictions will be gradually lifted,” the company said.
The airline had introduced “additional freighter routes and enhanced services to protect for the disruption” and is now moving to align cargo operations with the restoration of the passenger network. A trucking network, established earlier to connect freighter destinations with key hubs, will also remain in place to support cargo flows during the transition.
Air Canada announced on August 19 that it would restart flights after reaching a mediated settlement with the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge. The first flights were scheduled for the evening of August 19, though the airline cautioned that restoring full service could take up to ten days due to the repositioning of aircraft and crew.
According to Planespotters data, Air Canada operates six Boeing 767-300 passenger-to-freighter aircraft alongside its fleet of more than 200 passenger aircraft.
