Canada: Air Transat, one of Canada’s biggest airlines, will gradually suspend flights as it prepares for a potential pilots’ strike set for mid-week.
The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), which represents the airline’s 750 pilots, issued a 72-hour strike notice, warning that pilots will stop reporting for duty on December 10, unless a new labour agreement is reached.
The union said 99 percent of pilots had voted to authorise a strike after nearly a year of negotiations aimed at replacing their 2015 contract with improved pay, benefits, work rules and job security. In response to the notice, Air Transat announced that it will start cancelling flights on December 8 and halt all operations by December 9 to avoid the consequences of a sudden, unplanned interruption.
The carrier said the move is meant to prevent passengers, crews and aircraft from being stranded overseas if the strike goes ahead. Union leader Capt Bradley Small said pilots do not want to strike but feel they have been left with no choice after months of stalled talks.
Bradley Small stated that, “If we cannot reach an agreement, management will be responsible for every cancelled flight and stranded passenger.” Air Transat, however, called the strike notice premature, arguing that progress has been made at the bargaining table.
Julie Lamontagne, the airline’s human resources officer, accused the union of showing indifference toward the company through a reckless decision that she says does not reflect the state of negotiations. The airline previously faced a similar scenario in 2024, when its flight dispatchers voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike before a deal was reached, averting the walkout.
With negotiations ongoing and both sides exchanging pointed statements, the coming days will determine whether Canada’s third-largest airline will face a full-scale shutdown or reach a last-minute agreement.
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