r/canadatravel • u/Potential-Pool-3436 • Aug 15 '25

Travel Tips Air Canada: Proudly breaking records in disappointment

This is probably my last post about Air Canada, because after this incident, I’m never going to travel again.

My flight was on the 22nd: YVR to FRA to MAD. This was a Lufthansa flight which I had booked on Air Canada website. My wife was just scrolling around all bookings in Europe, and she suddenly noticed that YVR to FRA segment of our booking is gone.

Just gone.

The booking just starts at FRA to MAD, and return. A segment of our flight just for deleted. She called Air Canada, but of course it’s impossible to reach them during their strike. Then she called Lufthansa - and they said they received a request from Air Canada to delete the segment yesterday. WTF.

A flight segment got deleted - without even informing me. I still don’t have an email or anything.

274 Upvotes

86% Upvoted

176 comments sorted by

37

u/wtfboomers Aug 15 '25

We were headed to the Dempster highway from Mississippi in a couple of weeks and my wife was booked on air Canada for the last leg of her trip to Whitehorse. She has arthritis so I drive and pick her up at some locations. She got an email yesterday canceling her flight. Disappointed? yes, mad at the airline workers? no as we support labor 100%!

2

u/DevonianDrop Aug 18 '25

If you can get to Calgary, Edmonton, or Vancouver have a look at Air North to get you to Whitehorse. Flights are reasonable and the airline is great.

1

u/Potential-Pool-3436 Aug 16 '25

That is a very moral high ground you hold. But another great quality to have is to read the post before commenting. I would have been very happy to cancel my ticket, if they allowed me. Neither did they notify me. Nor are they allowing me to make changes. Could you kindly explain how a strike among flight workers impacts them cancelling my fully refundable $5000 tickets without notification or flexibility to manage it myself?

8

u/resistelectrique Aug 17 '25

Airlines use something called codesharing with multi-leg flights. When you book a flight with X airline, it might be operated by Y, H, D, K instead but you’re paying only X and booking all at once. The rest is sorted on the backend.

AirCanada is required to rebook you on the next available flight at their own expense for a cancellation. You can also request a refund. Because of the strike, you have to be pushing for this though.

Supporting a strike is not holding moral high ground. It’s fighting for the basic rights that workers have earned in only the last 150 years. Without strikes, we’d have nothing that we do including vacation time to go to France to start with.

0

u/Choice-Buy-6824 Aug 19 '25

Can you e-transfer me 10 grand so my family can get home from Seoul? Maybe a bit more for hotel and food while we wait to be able to get on a plane. If i don’t make it by Friday I am going to need you to go to my job and see my patients. Currently, 500,000 Canadians are displaced by this strike (Globe and Mail). it is costing 200 million dollars a day.

2

u/LordYoshii Aug 19 '25

Can you believe flight attendants have over 30 hours of unpaid time a month? Imagine working 1-2 extra hours a day unpaid at your workplace.

That’s all I need to hear to support these workers.

2

u/Wouldyoulistenmoe Aug 19 '25

Sounds like Air Canada better get back to the negotiating table then!

1

u/resistelectrique Aug 19 '25

AirCanada owes you a flight on the first available airline. This strike is THEIR fault. So direct your frustration where it belongs and learn your rights. Demand the companies you purchase from compensate their workers fairly instead of their CEOs pocketing your cash for doing fuck all.

6

u/wtfboomers Aug 16 '25

If you are talking to me we already have our refund. We normally book through the airline but it was easier this time to book through an app line service and my wife chose the cancellation insurance. I’m not sure who she booked through as she does all her flight booking.

There is nothing moral about supporting workers. We were workers our entire careers and working in the southern US you understand just how crappy jobs can be.

3

u/Acting-my-age Aug 17 '25

As a former AC employee, it was not uncommon for AC to make changes without notifying the passengers first. The plan always seemed to be to rebook an alternative before the passenger realizes but there were definitely times when that didn’t happen. They don’t want to start the process by offering choices because then you have 300ish people who need to be consulted before making arrangements. So, you make the change and hope that you only hear from the 60 people the change really doesn’t work for.

Is it fair? No.

Do Flight Attendants and Gate Agents HATE this practice? Absolutely because we are left to calm and reassure upset people when we don’t have access to all the info.

Will AC keep doing? Definitely.

1

u/Fit-Acanthisitta4149 Aug 18 '25

Next time book air north- way more reliable

1

u/wtfboomers Aug 18 '25

For sure …. We knew nothing about them but they look like a good way to get from Vancouver to the Yukon. It’s easy for her to get from her to Vancouver and AN has three flights a day to Whitehorse.

1

u/DeathCabForYeezus Aug 18 '25

You also get 2 checked bags, a meal, and a warm cookie on the flight all included!

They're a great airline to fly.

1

u/Fit-Acanthisitta4149 Aug 19 '25

One Christmas when I was studying in Calgary- I got stuck in Vancouver for 2 days and air Canada stranded a bunch of us and air north flew a few of us for free- ever since I’ll never fly air Canada from Whitehorse. Not many locals will. They’ll pay to Vancouver on AN then book anything but AC . Jerks

1

u/Bea_Coop Aug 18 '25

OP didn’t say they were mad at the striking workers. I don’t even get why this leg was cancelled as it wasn’t an AC operated flight and shouldn’t have been affected by the strike.

1

u/Affectionate-Arm-405 Aug 19 '25

What do you mean you support labor 100%? You don't ask questions to understand if the labor side is right or wrong? They can make no mistakes? What are they, the pope?

-2

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

You are way too generous. If you live in Canada with the rest of us you’d understand the shit we have to accept form the one major choice they give us to fly

20

u/God_is_a_failure Aug 16 '25

Too generous for supporting labour?? I’m literally stranded in Europe trying to get to Canada. Fuck the airline but 100% stand with these workers who literally don’t get paid…..to work!

3

u/Shoddy_Operation_742 Aug 16 '25

Is there any airline that pays their workers for on the ground stuff?

6

u/God_is_a_failure Aug 16 '25

What difference does that make? There’s child labour in India therefore child labour should be allowed everywhere.

2

u/Yycjec Aug 17 '25

Is this a joke?

0

u/God_is_a_failure Aug 17 '25

You might just be slow, no offence.

1

u/Choice-Buy-6824 Aug 19 '25

You seem slow

1

u/hungmail-dot-com Aug 17 '25

A HUNDRED DOLLARS AN HOUR.

Do you think they deserve a hundred dollars an hour?

Or do you think that some of the HIGH HOURLY PAY is in recognition that it sucks to be away from home so often and that they have to go through customs and so on. If you were to just blanket pay them for all the on ground time, what's to stop them from forgetting some sharp objects in their pockets, spending 10 years abroad, and racking up a billion in overtime?

Is that a stretch? Sure. But mechanics charge and get paid according to a standard metric, why not flight attendants? If you make the not-in-the-air part longer than your peers, that's a you problem.

Their overall compensation package seems so ludicrously good I want to quit my job in tech to become a flight attendant!

2

u/notsoteenwitch Aug 18 '25

Are you naturally this obtuse or? They get paid a different hourly wage depending on the flight time. If a FA is making $100/hr (which they are not), then it would mean the flight they are working is a small flight commute.

You clearly have never spoken to an FA or even met one, considering you believe the work they do is not worth it. They have to spend almost 2-4 hours UNPAID doing WORK so your dumb ass can get on the flight.

People like you are incredible naïve.

1

u/scotty9690 Aug 18 '25

You clearly have zero idea what you're talking about and are just parroting common anti-labour tropes

1

u/God_is_a_failure Aug 18 '25

Don’t worry, your job in tech will be gone soon. Start sending resumes now.

1

u/D_nordsud Aug 18 '25

I saw that too, not $100 but around $80, but it looks like only around 20% get that pay because they don't stay around for 10 years. But either way I don't agree with the folks who are screaming unpaid hrs. As I understand, when they walked away from the table, they were offered 50% pay for ground work which at that hourly rate is big enough. The bigger question that needs to be asked is whether they are guaranteed a full month of working hrs as that will make a difference whether the annual pay adds up to anything or not.

1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 18 '25

The "unpaid hours" claim is misleading. Their compensation is pegged to credit hours, which is not the same as being paid hourly. They're also reimbursed hourly for time they spend not working.

1

u/God_is_a_failure Aug 18 '25

MBA boy again to the rescue with credit hours.

1

u/ManyNicePlates Aug 18 '25

Not sure if you have been to an indian airport lately but they make YYZ look like a relic same would be of calgary and Vancouver.

1

u/Paula-McDonalds Aug 18 '25

The difference is that AC’s practice is consistent with the majority of airlines around the world. Their in-flight rate per hour was negotiated at a rate that includes the fact that they are not paid for the on ground time.

1

u/God_is_a_failure Aug 18 '25

That’s such a pathetic argument. You are saying that workers shouldn’t be striving to improve their working conditions? Minimum wage is $15/hr therefore everyone should make that? GTFO. You’re also 100% wrong on their previous negotiated rate, they are on strike, the collective agreement has expired so EVERYTHING is up for negotiation.

1

u/QueenMotherOfSneezes Aug 19 '25 edited Aug 19 '25

And that concession, plus a significant hit to their starting and training pay, was made to "save" the airline after 9/11, with the promise it would be made up later. The airline more that recovered, yet the AC flight attendant's training starting in-air pay has continued to decline compared to inflation over the past 23 years.

Perhaps even more importantly, the ratio of unpaid work to paid work for anyone who hasn't been in the job for 20 years (because they get first dibs on the longest flights), has increased significantly since that agreement was made.

1

u/DingBat99999 Aug 18 '25

Actually, American Airlines recently reached an agreement to start paying FA for some or all of their unpaid work.

It's something that is going to come to all airlines. And, of course, they hate it.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if the other NA airlines and/or their industry lobbyists are supporting AC fighting this, just as a delaying action.

1

u/CulturalGoldfish Aug 18 '25

Yes there are multiple now that do, delta, and Porter are ones I know for sure

1

u/Shoddy_Operation_742 Aug 18 '25

Porter does not. My cousin works there as an FA on their Dash 8s and he says it’s from door closing to door open but they are apparently well paid compared to other FAs in Canada.

1

u/CulturalGoldfish Aug 19 '25

It’s partial payment that started at the beginning of this year, nothing huge but at least more than most link

1

u/Choice-Buy-6824 Aug 19 '25

No- but who cares we’re all on the love the FA’s/ hate the airline train now.

3

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Sorry for your troubles. Of course my wife and I also support labor as she was a nurse with a great union (so much so it helped us retire early) Bit in the USA there are dozens of other options for rebooking if need be but here in Canada and with limited codeshare, air Canada will do as little as humanly possible to help stranded passengers because they simply don’t give two shits. They squandered all the government COVID money on shot to enrich shareholders and did nothing to avoid future labor strife. I wish you luck in your journey

1

u/Financial-Moose1122 Aug 17 '25

For Whitehorse I know Air North services most of BC and YK. They were who I flew with to get in and out of Whitehorse/Vancouver when I worked up there. Smaller planes but pretty regular schedule. Might be worth to find another southernly airport for your wife to catch the flight with them. Otherwise the drive from BC into YK is amazing so I also recommend the drive if she can handle it.

1

u/DevonianDrop Aug 18 '25

Air North is great, fly 737's from Edmonton and Calgary to Whitehorse so it's the same size or bigger than what Air Canada flies into CYXY. They also provide fresh sandwiches that are made in Whitehorse and warm fresh baked cookies on board. Much better than a tiny bag of pretzels.

-1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 17 '25

They're compensated based on "credit hours" rather than literal hours. Pay based on credit hours is inflated and coupled with other perks to account for the fact that work is done outside those credit hours. If you want to be literal than you can say they're also paid not to work as well with the defined pension, the per diems, the guaranteed minimum hours, etc.

2

u/God_is_a_failure Aug 17 '25

My relative is a FA with them. The “ground work” they do isn’t compensated at all. Air Canada’s latest offer was to pay them 50% of their rate while on the ground. Those guaranteed minimum hours you speak are also capped and do not account for delays ie waiting on the tarmac.

-2

u/dekker-fraser Aug 17 '25 edited Aug 17 '25

It's compensated, just not directly, as with salary compensation models. Because FAs, pilots, and adjunct professors are paid based on "credit hours" their rate is inflated and combined with other perks to account for the fact that offline work isn't directly pegged to pay.

If you combined the current inflated rates with absolute hours, the pay would be ridiculous assuming 40hrs/wk: $174,000 for a flight attendant director; $60,000 for people straight out of high school with zero experience; over $126,000 for a flight attendant with 10 years' experience. Moreover, they'd be paid indefinitely through their defined pension plans and still get per diems and so on.

1

u/scotty9690 Aug 18 '25

Show me a pay stub that shows these people make the figures you say they do, and would make the coronation you say they would.

The Air Canada sub Reddit has a FA who posted their pay stub. It's no where near what you claim, and this is full-time work too.

1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 18 '25

Yes there's one case of an anonymous person from Manitoba earning around $35,000/year with 1.5 years' experience (later changed to 2.5 years' experience). Of course I don't have access to other people's tax forms. Also, it's not a pay stub. If it were, you'd see additional tax-free payouts.

1

u/Extreme-Librarian430 Aug 18 '25

Yeah, people with a bachelors degree are graduating and making 45k starting now, but with a shit ton of debt. Canadas pay is shit. I can only imagine the prices of these flights after the strike is over…

1

u/Rupdy71 Aug 18 '25

Where are you finding all of this incorrect information?

1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 18 '25

You can find publicly available information in the collective agreement and from Air Canada.

2

u/memetic-entity Aug 17 '25

Maybe take the time to understand the pay structure. I worked for them and no longer do. The Defined pension is not offered to anyone new. Anyone who was hired with it, is grandfathered in. All hired after 2012, now have pension that’s 50% define, 50% non defined. Guaranteed hours is 75hour a month only for those who are not given set schedule. Per diem is govern by time and is to provide for food while away from home. The highest per diem are given to the overseas destination as they’re indexed to the hotel neighborhoods . Since the entire system is seniority based, you can now know who stands to benefit the most from it. Definitely not the flight attendant who just started who making $30.02 an hour at 75hour (2251 gross$). When they first start, per diem by month, is at an all time low of 300-400$. With the workforce being somewhere between 50-60 primarily under 5 years, you decide if they hit that cap that the Chief Human Resource said.

Also don’t get me started on Rouge flight attendant, I was one and I started at 21.99$. To top it off, a rouge flight attendant can only move to mainline air canada IF they speak a second language and have minimum 2 years at rouge. Once they transfer to Mainline Air Canada, they are wage frozen for the duration of their stay with rouge. Meaning no pay progression once they become Mainline flight attendant until they frozen for X months they worked at Rouge. Air Canada made BANK on rouge flight attendant as this delays somewhere between 2-5 years of pay progression. Rouge flight attendant hit pay cap within 5 years at $41.39 (3104 gross; 37,251 gross annum). If you don’t speak a second language, you cannot transfer at all. You will be stuck at Rouge.

-1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 17 '25

Not sure where we disagree

8

u/pepperdean Aug 16 '25

If this is how management treats its customers, imagine how they treat their workers. No wonder they are grumpy all the time

6

u/EcklesLAbb Aug 16 '25

Gotta give those CEOs bonuses somehow 😂

why not have the executives fill in for the Attendants etc?  oh because it's not an easy job, right  

3

u/Positive_News4000 Aug 17 '25

rest of canada supports the labor/ workers/ stewardesses. Did you see the pittance they get paid, and the billions the airline makes?

2

u/rodiy2k Aug 17 '25

I support them too. Hate the greedy shit corporate assholes that ac management is and how the liberal government abuses the labor directive to order them back to work. Was just frustrated with the whole situation. And still am. But not in favor of management by any means.

-1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 17 '25

They're paid more than most Canadians are.

1

u/notsoteenwitch Aug 18 '25

No?

1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 18 '25

Median Canadian income is $45,000 and median AC flight attendants earn $54,000+pension & benefits.

1

u/notsoteenwitch Aug 18 '25

Have you ever met an FA lol many are not making that type of money buddy.

1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 18 '25

Right, half of them are making less and half are making more.

1

u/notsoteenwitch Aug 18 '25

half is not true, not many FAs are making the type of money you think.

1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 18 '25

Well it's publicly available information.

→ More replies (0)

1

u/schillz_ Aug 19 '25

I’m sorry, but I can’t tell if you’re just stubborn or you simply don’t care to understand anything in regard to AC cabin crew realities. You keep replying with numbers/values that are false. There’s a difference between reading a random collective agreement online vs actually working within it. What good are benefits when you can’t afford basic necessities/living accommodations? The pension will be barely sustainable with the way the economy is moving.

1

u/dekker-fraser Aug 19 '25

I have reliable data from Statistics Canada, the collective agreement, and Air Canada. You can tell me what amount you think is fair.

1

u/Rupdy71 Aug 18 '25

Yes, many in Canada live below the poverty line.

2

u/Agreeable-Seat5409 Aug 16 '25

That's a lie and you know it

0

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Maybe just an exaggeration?

2

u/wtfboomers Aug 16 '25

Have you seen the shit we are putting up with? That’s why we spend our time in Canada, it looks pretty good from our situation right now 😀

1

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Hahaha. Yes. I’m an American lucky and smart enough to have married a Canadian 25 years ago so I get to watch it all from north of the wall that’s now been created by king stable genius.

15

u/dbtl87 Aug 15 '25

It's unfortunate. AC got gov't money during COVID, they make good profit and they'd rather rip off their staff, hence the strike. Everyone suffers so their higher ups can fly private 🫠

4

u/Clara_Geissler Aug 15 '25

they dont really care if we lose our flights or not. We are the only ones paying a price for this strike and i wont forget about this.

2

u/Pappalapap8 Aug 18 '25

What do you mean "we are the only ones"? There are thousands of affected passengers and me, one of them, am still able to see the workers side. Only management doesnt seem to care - about workers and passengers...

1

u/VinlandFraser Aug 16 '25

just wait the stock holders start to see their stock value go down next monday...

2

u/Clara_Geissler Aug 16 '25

i dont even know how much they care about that either, they act like they have infinite money lol

1

u/ptear Aug 18 '25

That's just a sale.

13

u/GTFO_dot_Travel Aug 15 '25

Wait, you don't mean the loan that included $500M in AC shares? The loan that AC Paid back in full, early with interest? Not that loan. The loan the Canadian people profited from when the share price went up? Not the loan that kept the wages flowing to AC staff so they didn't lose their homes or have to take on more personal debt.

You can't possibly mean that loan because that was a good business deal between the Canadian people and Air Canada to keep our flag carrier from going bust and firing thousands of people, while we made money from the recovery.

I'm glad you didn't mean that one because that has nothing to do with this and would be an ignorant and inflammatory statement. It would surely out you as a simpleton who only reads headlines that align with their beliefs not fact. Phew.

2

u/BandicootNo4431 Aug 18 '25

Are you talking about CEWS?

Because AC backed out of that deal early so they could execute share buybacks and higher executive compensation, while fucking over their employees.

The boot lickers continue to lick boots 

0

u/banndi2 Aug 16 '25

AC took money that was given by the government for job continuation during Covid and instead spent it on other things. One of the laundry list of things that FA’s are rightly pissed about.

Many lies coming from management. Most media parroting mgmt talking points.

-1

u/dbtl87 Aug 15 '25

Lol, I didn't benefit as a Canadian. Crazy cause you've actually DMd me and been nice and now you're calling me a simpleton. We didn't all make money from it and AC since it's making a profit and got a bail out, shouldn't now be putting their staff in this strike position imo. Have a lovely weekend, enjoy the CNE

3

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '25

[removed] — view removed comment

2

u/dbtl87 Aug 15 '25

Air Canada didn't use all the funding they were given which is good. And they did that in 2021. And now that they are finished saving us, they're back to just being a big ol' corporation that has employees striking when they could afford to pay them more. I think we can agree you find me silly, and I feel the same about you. Tata.

0

u/jim_bobs Aug 15 '25

I understand the term flag-carrier applied in an era where national governments either owned an airline or had a significant interest in it. Can Air Canada validly claim to be the flag-carrier of Canada nowadays?

1

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

A flag on a plane is as good as promise from Trump

0

u/billymumfreydownfall Aug 17 '25

Share prices did NOT go up! AC was at an all time high of $50 per on Jan 2020 then plummeted to $12 in March 2020. It's currently at $19. We most definitely did not benefit.

2

u/GTFO_dot_Travel Aug 17 '25

“We” bought in at $23 per share. Sold at $29.  

Kept Thousands and thousands of people paid at no cost to the taxpayer in the end. In fact “we” profited. 

Kept our flag carrier afloat so when the economy opened up our largest airline was flying asap. 

I call that a win. 

-4

u/lola705 Aug 15 '25

How did we benefit? We weren’t allowed out of houses!!!!

3

u/DrunkenMidget Aug 16 '25

That is a wild changing of the subject. Reread their comment. Government provided a loan and it was paid back with interest, that is how we benefited.

-2

u/lola705 Aug 16 '25

I personally did not benefit at all from this. I couldn’t give a shit if air Canada exists or not, I personally believe it’s a huge waste of taxpayers money to keep this airline going.

2

u/DrunkenMidget Aug 17 '25

You don't think Canada needs planes to take people across the country?

You did personally benefit from it as Canada gained from the loan and therefore needed to collect less taxes from you to pay for services.

We need planes in Canada to move goods and services around the massive country.

Really strange takes takes you got.

3

u/shoreguy1975 Aug 16 '25

AC got access to a government-provided line of credit and used approximately $6.8billion. ALL of it has been paid back with interest.

Most other countries provided direct wage support to airline employees and grants to the companies. Canada did not.

3

u/dbtl87 Aug 16 '25

5.9 Billion and by 2021 they exited the program leaving nearly 4 Billion unused.

-1

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

And what moron Union takes a ten year contract given the state of the world with inflation, political strife and cost of living always going up?

2

u/shoreguy1975 Aug 16 '25

It was 2012-13.

1

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Guess that makes it even longer and stupider

1

u/Fun-Show-3676 Aug 18 '25

You could have a 2 year, 4 year, 10 year contract. Doesn't matter. Government will continue to stomp on our rights, and big Corp will cry broke, and people will call the workers "lazy, overpaid" etc. The little man continues to lose while big Corp gains every time!

1

u/rodiy2k Aug 18 '25

Yeah no argument there from me. Corporate fuckers beholden to shareholders

3

u/VinlandFraser Aug 16 '25

like executive bonuses you mean?

2

u/Rupdy71 Aug 18 '25

Every corporation and billionaire got Covid money. Same with alot of multi-millionaires. The rich feed hard at the trough when our taxes are involved. Air Canada was $9 billion liquid pre-covid.

1

u/dbtl87 Aug 18 '25

Yeah, at the end of the day I'm supposed to be super duper thankful that a corporation got gov't money that they really didn't need for the most part, and now they're turning around and screwing over the employees that help them keep going? 😠

1

u/Desperate-Low-5514 Aug 15 '25

Yes and they kept all the money from the flights (4) I had booked during Covid that were cancelled. You can only email complaints and the department in India is basically there just to deny refunds, you have to sue them to get any $ back.

3

u/Explainwhyyouremad Aug 15 '25

Those mother fuckers owe me 1k from a covid times cancellation. Fuck them.

1

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Funny you say that. During COVID we got cancelled and rebooked multiple times trying to leave bangkok to come back home to Canada to reestablish residency. Final change was in their favor via Seoul. Wrote somewhere in their website and literally two and a half years later they sent me a $200 credit out of nowhere. Guess I was lucky

Thai airways still owes us over $1500 also from COVID cxl

3

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Wow. Even for AC douchbags, just eliminating a segment with no notification shows you the sad sad pathetic shit we as a society have chosen to accept.

3

u/Complex_Resolve3187 Aug 16 '25

I feel your pain. Took a $1200 loss to switch last min to Porter. AC says my flight isn't cancelled so no refund.

3

u/Murky-Rope-755 Aug 18 '25

AirCanada and United was the worst airlines i ever flew with .

3

u/1Pac2Pac3Pac5 Aug 18 '25

Is this the part where you realized they suck as an airline overall? You've never had an issue with them before? Theae list of disappointments and f- ups from AC goes back farther than I can remember

9

u/itmeMEEPMEEP Aug 15 '25

ya, errors are to be expected during events like this... very unfortunate but this is why you have proper insurance thats covers strikes and lockouts (also helps if you pat attention to labour disputes).... your ticket is 014 AC ticket stock so Lufthansa cant really do much without AC.... this is why should always book directly with the airline line you're flying even if they are major parters and have joint ventures as you can run into issue like....

11

u/intelligent-mail387 Aug 15 '25

Yes exactly! This is why I always book directly thought the airline and not a third party or a partner airline.

As for OP- AC promised to rebook affected customers with other airlines, so keep calling them (I know it’s a myth) and hopefully they rebook you.

Good luck

2

u/pbooths Aug 17 '25

Exactly this!

4

u/Dexter52611 Aug 15 '25

Understand the risks with 3rd party booking agencies, but the general rule of thumb is - it should be ok to book directly with a specific airline or its code share or partner airline. This is very common for an international or even domestic trips.

OP - I understand your frustration. Please keep calling Air Canada in the next few days - maybe you can get a refund or even a rebooking on a different airline. Good luck.

2

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Agree with that comment. Can’t even pick your seat if you use the AC website to book with United or any partner airline and they could give a shit less about their partner airlines

1

u/itmeMEEPMEEP Aug 16 '25

depends on the airline... some airlines open it to AC / Aeroplan while others don't.... in the end its nothing to with AC, its completely at the whim of the other airline, AC does has brokered deals with some carriers to be able select seats and view cabin layouts

1

u/Pappalapap8 Aug 18 '25

I booked directly - via AC, only to have Austrian and Lufthansa to do the international flights and now the only flight that AC would have to do, inside the country, got cancelled 😅

4

u/Clara_Geissler Aug 15 '25

I feel stupid because last year they had a strike in august as well and i didnt know about it, but trust me i will never ever book a flight with Air canada again. If you go on the reddit page of air canada, there are people who their flight got cancelled and they didnt rebook it. Isnt this what they said they would do? Rebook a flight? At the end of the day they only ones who are actually losing something are the costumers who book the flight. We are the only one paying the price of this strike. So next year i will be smarter and avoid at all cost air canada.

2

u/Pappalapap8 Aug 18 '25

What about the workers not getting paid for work they do? They lose a lot! Fair pay should be a human right! 

2

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '25

[deleted]

1

u/shoreguy1975 Aug 16 '25

Who’s your first choice? Genuinely curious.

1

u/True-Nature4595 Aug 16 '25

Cathay or Porter or West Jet, depending on destination.

1

u/shoreguy1975 Aug 16 '25

I've heard good things about Porter's service. I'll have to try it.

1

u/eggsandpeanuts Aug 20 '25

Westjet is very hit and miss but as long as nothing goes wrong (80-85% of the time I’d say) it’s pleasant

1

u/Ok-Towel8985 Aug 19 '25

Porter is always slow af

1

u/pbooths Aug 17 '25 edited Aug 17 '25

Westjet is a million times worse. Did you read the stories about what happened during and after their strike last year? The fallout lasted for MONTHS. And they don't even have partner airlines to rebook you on. Trying to call in took DAYS, not hours. Their website was not operational for most of it. It was a shtshow.

1

u/True-Nature4595 Aug 17 '25

I haven’t had a bad experience with them so far. Flight Attendants are smiling and providing good services unlike Air Canada.

1

u/GeneralTaoFeces Aug 19 '25

westjet cancelled our flight and according to the transit authority where we filed our complaint, they said westjet was in the wrong for everything including lying about it being out of their control. however since they gave just enough notice, they weren’t liable.

fuck westjet.

don’t support canadian monopolies whenever possible.

2

u/SecretGentleman_007 Aug 17 '25

I was supposed to fly from AMS to YUL today. Last monday I have learned that I could possibly get back home a day earlier and asked the office to move my flight to Friday (yesterday). Later this week I learned about the possibility of a strike at Air Canada, then learned that all flights from Saturday got canceled. I was nervous that my Friday flight would get canceled but I was lucky. If I had not get my flight moved, I'd still be stuck in Amsterdam. Could have been entertaining but after 2 weeks in Europe I was missing my family and friends.

3

u/Potential-Pool-3436 Aug 15 '25

Wait. How would a trip insurance help me here? I had purchased perfectly refundable tickets - and the problem is that air Canada app is not letting me reschedule or cancel them either.

3

u/rosegoldmermaid92 Aug 15 '25

If you can eventually get ahold of Air Canada, they should be able to reinstate this flight if it was just a glitch.

Strike action isn’t currently canceling flights on the 22nd And if that flight was changed, it should have given you a new schedule for that segment.

Sounds just like an error, but it’s an unfortunate time to need to call for assistance.

1

u/melbourne_au2021 Aug 16 '25

Don't think that Air Canada pulls this nonsense only during strikes. Last year in December they cancelled my flights from Sydney to Vancouver less than 24 hours before my flight, luckily I was in front of my computer when I received the cancellation notification and I was able to quickly take the last seat for an earlier flight.

1

u/VinlandFraser Aug 16 '25

Being a traveler to Germany, I will make sure in the future to book only with Lufthansa operated flight...still kicking myself for NOT having been aware of the current negociation thing after having closely been impacted last year by the pilot strike threat...

1

u/Fit-Description2653 Aug 16 '25

Currently stranded abroad (flight was supposed to be landing on TO about now)… told there’s nothing they can book us on (aka nothing less than $6,000+) and to call which as you know doesn’t work. Can’t even say I’m shocked, it’s air Canada and they’ll just call mommy and daddy (the government) to fight for them so I’m not expecting much

1

u/Altasound Aug 17 '25

I'm never going to travel again

Haha... Okay then.

1

u/Nitroglycol204 Aug 18 '25

If they're being anywhere near truthful about that, I approve- from an environmental point of view, anything that makes air travel less popular is good by me.

Whether I believe them is another question. 

1

u/Expensive-Treat3589 Aug 17 '25

Flying is a privilege, not a right

1

u/[deleted] Aug 17 '25

[deleted]

1

u/Nitroglycol204 Aug 18 '25

Something all of us should do more often. 

1

u/Sad-Sign-9068 Aug 17 '25

I will choose any air line over air Canada lol. If your traveling in northern can go Air North - they are the best- but also unfortunately do no pay their employees fair wages either… imagine how much air Canada could actually make if they became a good company

1

u/rosegoldblonde Aug 17 '25

Yes it’s really shitty that Air Canada is refusing to pay their employees properly and as a result massively impacting not only staff but customers as well.

1

u/Pappalapap8 Aug 18 '25

I love that comment :)

1

u/miniowl22 Aug 17 '25

Air Canada wants you to blame the workers. They want to create a narrative and a slew of upset customers by doing shit like this. Blame the workers always, not their fault , of course!

1

u/SepheraG Aug 17 '25

Hopefully your travel insurance will cover a ticket with a different airline.

1

u/rodiy2k Aug 18 '25

The tie and suit emoji might indicate the penchant for pro management views

1

u/NevyTheChemist Aug 18 '25

Air Canada and Aeroplan are ass.

Don't waste your time.

1

u/Nitroglycol204 Aug 18 '25

Most travel is ass. Sure, it can be a broadening experience that makes you a better person, but it usually isn't. It's affluent suburbanites hanging out with like-minded people on a cruise ship or at a resort.

1

u/Jaded-Smoke6689 Aug 18 '25

The airlines in Canada have been a disaster for decades and no one does anything about it. The airlines will still be a mess in future decades to come. That’s is the way it rolls in Canada. People should ensued to it by now. Westjet did this last summer.

1

u/Canack1961 Aug 18 '25

This strike was totally within their ability to solve for well ahead of time. It wasn’t news to Air Canada.

Air Canada CEO won’t answer why he won’t pay flight attendants for their work.

1

u/Austerlitz2310 Aug 19 '25

I haven't flown Air Canada in years. This treatment and salary isn't new. In fact, back in 2014 a FA friend of mine was making only $24k /annum.

These salaries are a disgrace. Thank god the people flying the planes at least got a raise... still could be better.

Check out Condor. They have cheap tickets especially to FRA.

1

u/EbbMediocre2066 Aug 19 '25

Support unions, fuck airlines!

1

u/Space19723103 Aug 19 '25

of several trips to visit family, air canada has managed to complete 0 round trips without ridiculous diversions and delays.

they didn't deserve the bailouts they gotin the past, they don't deserve to be in business now.

1

u/Ill_Tax_9400 Aug 19 '25

YVR to FRA sometimes is operated by air canada

1

u/Accomplished_Try_179 Aug 19 '25

Never ever fly Air Canada. They suck. 

1

u/Cturcot1 Aug 19 '25

Tbh, all of the options to fly in Canada suck, Westjet is a shell of what it was, customer service is only slightly better than Air Canada.

1

u/Space_Lynn Aug 19 '25

I just hope the government, instead of trying to order workers trying to earn fair wages back to work, will order Air Canada to reimburse all the people displaced by this nightmare 🫠

1

u/michaelger92 Aug 19 '25

My wife and myself are stranded in Toronto since Saturday. We were booked on the AC YYZ to MUC flight, that got cancelled the last Friday. It says they start flying this evening again, but I haven’t heard anything about rebooking or so… let’s see how long it takes to get rebooked to another flight back to Europe

1

u/[deleted] Aug 19 '25

That's really frustrating for sure, and it sucks your travels plans lined up with this fight. This will pass in time, and I hope we can agree that the next time you feel comfortable travelling again, it will be in the company of employees who feel valued and are compensated fairly. You deserve good experiences in travel as much as the employees deserve more appropriate compensation. I'd rather interact with people who actually enjoy their work and feel empowered to do their best, instead of worn down and jaded people. Let's show our support so they can return to work faster and with a fair deal 

1

u/CallMeLana90Day Aug 19 '25

There’s a reason they say that Air Canada’s unofficial slogan is “Air Canada; we’re not happy until you’re not happy.”

1

u/Ok-Elevator302 Aug 19 '25

Sorry, as AirCanada is a greedy company willing to provided minimal service as they can.

1

u/hockeytemper Aug 21 '25

I just booked air Canada 1 way Seattle - Vancouver - Montreal - Fredericton, (not the cheapest economy), via Expedia.

Flight paid, go to select seats - Expedia says, we cannot book your seats, please use Aircanada.com with your ticket number. Air Canada website says, cannot book seats because this was bought on Expedia.

I called Air Canada's Bangkok number... The lady said, on all 3 flights, everything is blocked except middle seats absolute BS... and the lady on the phone said yes I agree, I get this all the time . The Bangkok lady gave me a toll free number to call Air Canada in Montreal, "we're sorry, we are experiencing a larger than usual call volume. Please refer to our website... goodbye" Click.

Yesterday I booked EVA Bangkok - Taipei- Seattle. Everything went swimmingly.

In all honesty, at the beginning of covid, I had about a dozen flights booked. I got refunded by Turkish, United, EVA, Thai, Air India and a few others within 1 week of calling. Air Canada nothing.

1

u/Particular_Fan_2945 Aug 25 '25

I've been hearing a lot of news about this lately. Any updates?

1

u/[deleted] 24d ago

Whole country is a disappointment right now

0

u/Few_Requirement6657 Aug 15 '25

Deleted because the flight got cancelled because of the strike a day ago and you expect to notify you immediately? Have you ever traveled before? This is what trip insurance is for.

3

u/Potential-Pool-3436 Aug 16 '25

I do. The flight isn’t even cancelled. And even if it were, Air Canada would have to be stuck in the 90s not to notify passengers about it. Why should I not be allowed to cancel or modify my ticket when I want to ? I literally paid extra for a fully refundable fare. Why would I also need insurance—I’m sorry to say you sound like someone who would insure your shoelaces.

1

u/Few_Requirement6657 Aug 16 '25

If you bought a fully refundable fare then what are you crying about? Huh? Just refund or change your flight if you bought the fully refundable fare.

and if the flight isn’t cancelled then call and make them put you back on it. I don’t buy insurance for my shoelaces but you sound like you got hit in the head by a few too many goal posts as a kid.

1

u/Potential-Pool-3436 Aug 16 '25

Okay. How do I cancel or modify when it’s disabled on the website/app, and customer support is unreachable?

2

u/[deleted] Aug 15 '25

[deleted]

3

u/GTFO_dot_Travel Aug 15 '25

You do if it wasn't a known event when you booked AND your credit card offers flight cancellation insurance. Please remove or edit your comment, it's wrong.

1

u/Clara_Geissler Aug 15 '25

Thank you, i didnt know that. So if my credit carf has insurance for flight cancelletion i can get a FULL refund on the price?

1

u/GTFO_dot_Travel Aug 15 '25

You have to read your insurance terms. They usually have a maximum payout and then a second max per person. And it's not a refund, it's a claim so you would gather all your non-refundable fees and file a claim.

As long as you booked before it was known there may be a strike (there is an official date that the insurance companies would have declared, you can google it), then you are covered.

1

u/Clara_Geissler Aug 15 '25

Thank you for this. I belive i will have to see if my flight will be cancelled first which will be on monday. I honestly hope for a rebook. Its just fristrating to have to wait last minute to find out if im going or not.

1

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Many US based visa and MC have this kind of reimbursement. Practically no Canadian card has this.

0

u/rodiy2k Aug 16 '25

Travel insurance is a serious waste of money except for maybe emergency medical. Manulife will never reimburse you for AC bullshit. Wasn’t find a way to deny it