Air Canada Pays 737 Max Pilots to Not Fly as Grounding Drags On

Think U.S. airlines have it tough with the Boeing 737 Max grounding? At least they can keep pilots busy during the lengthy grounding, since they can fly older versions of the same airplane. Air Canada has no such opportunity, as executives made clear Tuesday on their second quarter earnings call, and it's hampering the airline's ability to operate efficiently. At Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, and American Airlines, 737 pilots can operate all versions of the airplane, including the 737NGs, or next-generation planes, that make up the bulk of their fleets. But Air Canada doesn't fly the NG, so it trained hundreds of pilots just to fly the Max. Now, it must pay them not to work, and those costs are adding up. "We have some 400-plus pilots that we're carrying, who are waiting for the Max to come back," Air Canada CEO Calin Rovinescu