The carrier said it was changing its policy on refunds for flights cancelled during the Covid crisis since 1 February 2020.

Air Canada said customers can submit refund requests immediately with the policy applying to passengers with non-refundable fares whose flights were cancelled or who chose to cancel their travel plans due to Covid.

The airline confirmed it would not recall commission paid to travel agencies for refunded tickets.

The new policy also states that from 13 April 2021 customers who have purchased non-refundable tickets will be entitled to a refund if their flights are cancelled or rescheduled by more than three hours.

Lucie Guillemette, chief commercial officer at Air Canada, said: “Air Canada will be offering refunds to all eligible customers whether they cancelled their ticket or if their flight was cancelled by the airline. 

“Customers can now submit refund requests online or through their travel agent and we are committed to processing refunds as fast as possible.”

Air Canada stressed that it had already refunded more than Canadian $1.2 billion (£700 million) to customers holding refundable tickets since March 2020.