Air Canada has announced it has reached a “tentative” agreement on a new 4-year pay deal for its pilots.

The move averts the fear of upheaval for passengers who were braced for large scale strike action which would have grounded most of Air Canada’s fleet.

The airline flies nearly 700 flights a day out of Canada, alone, carrying around 110,000 passengers daily.

Its Canadian-based pilots have been looking for a pay rise in parallel to what Air Canada’s US-based pilots gained last year when there was the perfect storm of a pilot shortage twinned with a rise in passenger demand.

Air Canada said in a statement: “The new agreement recognises the contributions and professionalism of Air Canada’s pilot group, while providing a framework for the future growth of the airline. Terms of the new agreement will remain confidential pending a ratification vote by the membership, expected to be completed over the next month, and approval by the Air Canada Board of Directors.

“Customers who used the airline’s labour disruption goodwill policy to change their flights originally scheduled from between September 15 and 23, 2024, to another date before November 30, 2024, can change their booking back to their original flight in the same cabin at no cost, providing there is space available.”

Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge will continue to operate as normal, it added.