‘We’re not home’: Montrealer stranded in Lebanon amid ongoing Air Canada strike
Posted August 17, 2025 4:43 pm.
Last Updated August 17, 2025 6:40 pm.
Air Canada operations remain in limbo as flight attendants continue strike action despite the federal government’s intervention.
Meanwhile, Canadians who are stuck abroad are feeling the consequences, having to deal with the stress of cancelled flights and the financial uncertainty of paying for other accommodations out of pocket.
This is certainly the case for newlywed Joseph Beyrouthy and his family who have been stuck in Lebanon after their flight was cancelled on Saturday.
“We were very stressed. We had no idea what to do, especially we’re stuck here. We’re staying in a hotel, we’re paying fees for hotels, we’re paying fees to go out, to eat, everything is paid, we’re not home. So, we started to stress about all the stuff and all the people that came to Lebanon, to spend to be with us during the wedding. A lot of people are stuck here too. It’s a very stressful situation. We didn’t know the stressful part is that we don’t know where we’re going to when we’re going to come back, when the strike is going to end, what’s going to happen,” said Beyrouthy as he described how he felt the moment he found out his flight back home to Montreal had been cancelled.
Beyrouthy says he’s had to pay $200.00 U.S per day to stay in a hotel until he can get on his flight with Qatar Airways, which isn’t until Wednesday.
“My wife and I, we start working Monday, so we’re going to lose three days of work,” he added.
Finding an alternative flight proved to be a nightmare for Beyrouthy, who says reaching Air Canada employees was a challenge on its own, though they were eventually able to help him.
“We were not able to reach agents and Air Canada to contact them to tell them, okay, book me something else to go back,” said Beyrouthy. “They would hang up the phone right away.”
“This is the important part, being able to talk to all the people that are abroad and waiting for some information,” added Beyrouthy as he criticized the company’s ability to properly help their clients stranded around the world with no access to information.
Despite Beyrouthy’s horrific experience, he is one of the lucky ones, as many are still left without flights as the union representing Air Canada flight attendants confirmed to CityNews in statement that they will not be following the government’s directives, saying:
“We will be challenging this blatantly unconstitutional order that violates the Charter rights of 10,517 flight attendants, 70% of whom are women, and 100% of whom are forced to do hours of unpaid work by their employer every time they come to work.
We invite Air Canada back to the table to negotiate a fair deal, rather than relying on the federal government to do their dirty work for them when bargaining gets a little bit tough.
We remain on strike. We demand a fair, negotiated contract and to be compensated for all hours worked.”
In an act of defiance, CUPE called for a “day of action” on Sunday, with flight attendants back at the picket line for demonstrations outside of the Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary airports.
Leaving travellers like Beyrouthy scrambling and competing for flight availability on competitor airlines as the strike enters its second day.
