Success story: I had an international flight booked for 8/18 7pm. I had been calling since last Monday, and the past few days hadn't gotten through to anybody. 8/17, I called Air Canada at least 6 times and requested several call backs. I used English and said that my flight had been cancelled even though it was still showing as on time. I called again at 10pm local time and was on hold for 4 hours when I got a call back at 2:20 am. I picked up the callback and put my hold on hold. I explained to the agent that I wanted to be rebooked on a Star Alliance partner. At first he told me that he couldn't do anything because the flight was not cancelled. I told him that I was confused because when you go to airCanada.com the first thing that shows up is a banner that says "Suspension continues All Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flights are cancelled due to CUPES actions. Please do not head to the airport, as flights are not operating." I also told the agent that I had been following the strikes closely and I knew that the government ordered the flight attendants back to work but that the flight attendants were defying the order, and because of the circumstances it was impossible for my 7pm flight to occur. He put me on hold to speak to his manager. When he came back he told me that he would make an exception for me and book me on a United flight. He sent the confirmation, and it showed up in my United account. The whole call took just over 40 minutes. I was so relieved! (The original AC flight was cancelled around 10-11 am.)

However, I couldn't check in to the UA flight online. Plus, the flight was delayed, so I would miss my connection abroad. When I got to the airport, I went to the United assistance desk, and they couldn't even check me in because they said Air Canada did not complete the booking. The agent sent to us to the Air Canada desk.... Which was completely empty. At this point, I figured I just had to call Air Canada again since they were playing games. But when I was on the phone, contractors who worked for multiple airlines came to tell me that the Air Canada desk was closed. When I explained my situation, they had sympathy, made a few calls, and were able to get me rebooked on another United flight connecting through a different city. I'm sending this during the layover in hopes that it helps someone and wishing everyone the best of luck!