Air Canada and WestJet disruptions affect 274 flights across Canada

Disruption overview

Canada's air network saw a new wave of disruption on 22 May 2026, with 59 cancellations and at least 215 delays affecting services at Montréal–Trudeau International Airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, and Calgary International Airport. Air Canada, WestJet, and regional carriers including Jazz Aviation, PAL Airlines, and Air Inuit were all caught in the disruption, with remote routes to CFB Goose Bay and northern Québec among the hardest hit. Because the problems appear linked to airline staffing and maintenance pressure rather than weather, some passengers on trips covered by EC 261 may be able to claim up to £520 compensation if their flight was canceled or arrived more than 3 hours late.

Disruption details

A fresh wave of disruption hit Canada's air network on 22 May 2026, with 59 flight cancellations and at least 215 delays affecting services at Montréal–Trudeau International Airport, Toronto Pearson International Airport, and Calgary International Airport. If you're traveling today, that can mean long lines, missed connections, and a real chance of being stranded overnight.

Affected schedules feature Air Canada and WestJet heavily, along with regional carriers Jazz Aviation, PAL Airlines, and Air Inuit. Recovery is still under way, and as aircraft and crews end up in the wrong places, the disruption is already spilling into evening and next-day schedules.

The main impact so far is:

• 59 flights have been canceled during the current disruption.

• At least 215 more flights are running late.

• Major hubs in Montreal, Toronto, and Calgary are seeing rebooking queues and rolling delay updates.

• Thinly served northern routes are among the most exposed, with fewer backup options if a flight is canceled.

For remote communities, the disruption is especially serious. Several departures linking Montreal and Québec City with CFB Goose Bay and smaller settlements in northern Québec have been canceled or pushed back, cutting into access to medical appointments, government services, and onward long-haul connections.

On these routes, passengers often don't have many alternatives. Some lifeline flights only operate once or twice a day, and in parts of northern Canada there may be no practical rail or road substitute. That raises the risk of overnight stranding for travelers who miss their window.

At the main airports, travelers are facing crowded customer-service desks and long rebooking lines. Some passengers are still finding seats on later flights the same day, but availability is tightening quickly as multiple airlines try to move disrupted customers at once. If you're connecting from a regional feeder, the odds of missing your onward flight are also rising.

Early analysis points to operational pressure inside the airline network rather than outside disruption. Staffing constraints, very tight aircraft use, and maintenance-related schedule changes are being cited as the main drivers, not weather or air traffic control limits.

Today's figures also extend a months-long pattern of volatility in Canada's on-time performance. With summer demand building, similar pressure could return unless airlines add more spare capacity or ease staffing constraints.

That matters for your rights. When delays and cancellations stem from issues the airline is expected to manage, affected passengers may have stronger grounds for airline support and, on journeys covered by EC 261, possible compensation. The exact outcome depends on your route, how long you were delayed, and what caused the problem.

If your flight has been canceled, the airline should offer you rerouting or a refund. If you're stuck waiting for hours, or overnight away from home, you should also be offered care such as food, refreshments, accommodation, and transport to and from the hotel where needed.

If your disrupted trip falls under EC 261 and your flight was canceled at short notice or arrived more than 3 hours late, you may be entitled to up to £520 compensation. If you want to see where you stand, you can check your compensation with AirHelp's free flight checker in just 2 minutes.

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