A GLOBAL union for pilots has reached an agreement with a Canadian airline that could prevent a shutdown of the country’s largest airline.

Talks between Air Line Pilots Association (Alpa) and Air Canada produced a “tentative, four-year agreement,” the airline announced in a statement on Sunday.

It is understood that the deal “recognises the contributions of the pilots flying for Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, while setting a new framework for company growth.”

The terms of the deal will remain confidential until ratification by union members and approval by the airline’s board of directors over the next month, the airline said.

The pilots’ association said its Air Canada master executive council voted to approve the tentative agreement on behalf of more than 5,400 Air Canada pilots. 

If ratified by a majority of members, the deal is expected to generate an additional $1.9 billion (around £1.4bn) for the pilots over the period of the agreement, the union said in a statement.

Charlene Hudy, the union’s executive council’s chair, said: “While it has been an exceptionally long road to this agreement, the consistent engagement and unified determination of our pilots have been the catalyst for achieving this contract. 

“After several consecutive weeks of intense round-the-clock negotiations, progress was made on several key issues including compensation, retirement, and work rules.”

Federal Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon confirmed the agreement on Sunday, saying: “Thanks to the hard work of the parties and federal mediators, disruptions have been prevented for Canadians.”

The two sides could have issued a 72-hour notice of a strike or lockout beginning Sunday. The airline said the notice would have triggered its three-day wind-down plan and started the clock on a full work stoppage as soon as September 18.