MONTREAL, May 4, 2018 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada advises customers that a significant wind and thunder storm at Toronto-Pearson has affected airport operations, a number of flights across the airline's system have been cancelled or diverted. Customers should check the status of their flights at www.aircanada.com before going to airports throughout the network.

We are working diligently to restore normal operations, but due to airport facility constraints and air traffic control restrictions it will not be possible to operate our normal schedule for the rest of the day. Wind gusts have reached 119 kilometers per hour causing damage to air bridges, air field equipment and aircraft due to blowing ramp equipment at Toronto-Pearson. We thank our customers for their patience and understanding.

Air Canada has put in place a flexible rebooking policy for customers who wish to change their travel to or from Toronto. We are also planning to add capacity as soon as possible to move customers affected by these events.

Customers may contact Air Canada Reservations (1-888-247-2262) to change their flight, free of charge, to another date subject to availability in the cabin you originally purchased. Otherwise, any fare difference will apply.

For airport information please see https://www.torontopearson.com/updates/#

About Air Canada

Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving more than 220 airports on six continents. Canada's flag carrier is among the 20 largest airlines in the world and in 2017 served close to 48 million customers. Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 64 airports in Canada, 60 in the United States and 98 in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and South America. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation network serving 1,300 airports in 191 countries. Air Canada is the only international network carrier in North America to receive a Four-Star ranking according to independent U.K. research firm Skytrax, which also named Air Canada the 2017 Best Airline in North America. For more information, please visit: www.aircanada.com/media, follow @AirCanada on Twitter and join Air Canada on Facebook.

SOURCE Air Canada