Air Canada and Emirates Airline will this year implement a codeshare deal that the carriers say will significantly expand the reach of their respective networks. The deal adds another North American codeshare partner to Emirates’ roster following a fallout last decade with major US airlines. Air Canada on 12 July announced the deal, under which the Montreal-based carrier intends to sell tickets on “key” Emirates flights, says Air Canada CE Michael Rousseau. The deal will give Air Canada’s customers “options” when travelling to Dubai, and beyond from Dubai, Air Canada says. Under the agreement, “select Air Canada flights” will also carry Emirates’ code. Air Canada does not specify how many or which routes the deal will encompass, and says the agreement still requires regulatory approval. “Further details of the partnership and specific codeshare routes will be announced when finalised,” Air Canada says. Emirates president Tim Clark says the partnership will expand his airline’s presence in “Canada and the Americas”, via Emirates’ flights to Toronto and the USA. Emirates flies from Dubai to Toronto and about a dozen major US cities, according to schedule data published by Diio. “It also opens up many new route combinations for travellers across Emirates’ and Air Canada’s extensive networks in the Americas, the Middle East, Africa and Asia”, Clark says. The partnership stands to expand Emirates reach after a fallout between it and major US airlines last decade.<br/>
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Embattled Scandinavian airline SAS and unions representing pilots will resume negotiations on Wednesday to try and agree a new labour deal to end a one-week strike. SAS has cancelled more than 1,200 flights since July 4 when talks with many of its pilots over a new collective bargaining agreement collapsed and they launched the crippling strike. "What has now happened is that we have asked the parties to gather in Stockholm from Wednesday," Swedish mediator Jan Sjolin said.<br/>
Ethiopian Airlines took delivery of a 737 Max from Boeing in June, the aircraft maker disclosed Tuesday. It's the first time Ethiopian has taken a 737 Max since the March 2019 crash that killed all 157 people on board, and led to a 20-month grounding of the jet. The other airline that suffered a fatal crash involving the Max, Lion Air of Indonesia, has yet to take a new Max delivery. Boeing reported the delivery as part of its June orders and delivery report. Overall it was also the busiest month for 737 Max deliveries since the grounding ended in late 2020, with 43 of the planes being delivered to customers. It was also the busiest month for any kind of commercial plane deliveries by Boeing since March of 2019, with a total of 51 deliveries.<br/>It's a sign that demand for the plane is returning to pre-crash levels. Boeing has so far delivered 443 of the 737 Max jets since the grounding ended, with 181 of those being delivered so far this year, up from 105 delivered in the first half of 2021.<br/>Ethiopian did not respond to a request for comment on taking the delivery. Its web site lists four 737 Max planes in its fleet, and another 24 on order. It's not clear how the June delivery affects those numbers. The airline also has 27 older versions of the 737 Max in its fleet.<br/>