it was a silent but visible show of solidarity Air Canada Pilots held an information picket at Vancouver International Airport as well as airports in Winnipeg Toronto and Montreal it was on their days off and planes were still flying our goal is not to strike we need to reach a Collective Agreement that reflects the values that we bring to the airline if if we are in a position and Air Canada forces us into that position today is a very strong indication our group is ready to go this marks the beginning of a 21-day cooling off period for both sides with Pilots ready to strike as early as September 17 98% of its members voted in favor of strike action one industry expert predicts if a strike does happen it will likely be in October September 17th quiet time in the airline industry not much going on few sales here and there but I would I would delay it until around Thanksgiving know people Thanksgiving uh and that would have you know that will get Air Canada's attention Air Canada says there has been significant progress during negotiations for passengers caught in this dispute it's also offering more flexibility for those traveling between September 15 and 23rd so if you are really concerned you've got to be somewhere you may want to take advantage of some of those flexible options for you to to change dates or um to to look at maybe getting a refund the airline pilots Association represents some 5400 Air Canada Pilots pay and benefit remain major issues in what the pilots say is an outdated contract dated back to 2014 if Pilots go on strike they would have to issue a 72-hour notice Grace Key Global News