TORONTO, Canada (AFP) — Air Canada cancelled hundreds of flights Saturday as it began shutting down operations in response to a strike by flight attendants — triggering summer travel chaos for its 130,000 daily passengers.

Canada’s largest airline, which flies directly to 180 cities worldwide, urged customers not to go to the airport if they have a ticket for Air Canada or its lower-cost subsidiary Air Canada Rouge.

It said flights by Air Canada Express, which are operated by a third party, would not be impacted by the walkout.

“Air Canada deeply regrets the effect the strike is having on customers,” the company said in a statement.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents Air Canada’s 10,000 flight attendants, said that strike action officially began at 12:58 am local time (0458 GMT) on Saturday.

In response, Air Canada began a “lockout” of cabin crew belonging to CUPE, preventing the employees from working during the standoff fueled by a payment dispute.

Air Canada had been gradually winding down operations ahead of the possible labor action.

As of 8:00 pm Friday, the airline said it had cancelled 623 flights affecting more than 100,000 passengers. Its full 700-flight daily schedule has been scrapped for Saturday.

“At this time, Air Canada remains engaged and committed to negotiate a renewal to its collective agreement with CUPE,” it said.

– Unpaid ground work –
In addition to wage increases, the union says it wants to address uncompensated ground work, including during the boarding process.

Rafael Gomez, who heads the University of Toronto’s Center for Industrial Relations, told AFP it is “common practice, even around the world” to compensate flight attendants based on time spent in the air.

He said the union had built an effective communication campaign around the issue, creating a public perception of unfairness.

An average passenger, not familiar with common industry practice, could think, “‘I’m waiting to board the plane and there’s a flight attendant helping me, but they’re technically not being paid for that work,'” he said, speaking before the strike began.

“That’s a very good issue to highlight,” Gomez further said, adding that gains made by Air Canada employees could impact other carriers.

Air Canada detailed its latest offer in a Thursday statement, specifying that under the terms, a senior flight attendant would on average make CAN$87,000 ($65,000) by 2027.

CUPE has described Air Canada’s offers as “below inflation (and) below market value.”

The union has also rejected requests from the federal government and Air Canada to resolve outstanding issues through independent arbitration.

Gomez said he did not expect any stoppage to last long.

“This is peak season,” he said.

“The airline does not want to lose hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue… They’re almost playing chicken with the flight attendants.”

Canada’s economy, though showing resilience, has begun feeling the effects of President Donald Trump’s trade war, with his tariffs hitting crucial sectors like auto, aluminum and steel.

In a statement issued before the strike began, the Business Council of Canada warned an Air Canada work stoppage could add further pain.

“At a time when Canada is dealing with unprecedented pressures on our critical economic supply chains, the disruption of national air passenger travel and cargo transport services would cause immediate and extensive harm to all Canadians,” it said.