Flight crew at Air Canada has ended a dispute with the airline which had grounded flights and stranded thousands of passengers since Saturday.

A tentative agreement was announced by the union representing flight attendants and confirmed by the airline, which said flights will resume later on Tuesday.

More than 10,000 staff had walked out in protest at pay and scheduling. The deal has not been disclosed in full, though the union said it achieves "transformational change" for workers and the industry.

The agreement will now be presented to members to be ratified.

The breakthrough came nine hours after talks began with the help of an approved mediator appointed by the government.

"Unpaid work is over," said the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) in a statement early on Tuesday, calling the negotiations a "historic fight" for the industry.

The union also advised its members to "fully co-operate with resumption of operations".

The dispute between Air Canada and the union had escalated when CUPE rejected an order to return to work issued by the Canadian Industrial Relations Board, which deemed the strike "unlawful" in a ruling on Monday.

Following news of a tentative deal, Air Canada said the first flights would restart on Tuesday evening, but it may take days to return to a full service because aircraft and crew are out of position.

It added that it would not comment on the terms of the agreed deal until it had been ratified.

In contract negotiations, Air Canada said it had offered flight attendants a 38% increase in total compensation over four years, with a 25% raise in the first year.

CUPE said the offer was "below inflation, below market value, below minimum wage" and would still leave flight attendants unpaid for some hours of work, including boarding and waiting at airports ahead of flights.

The union also rejected an order by the Canadian government to enter binding arbitration and return to work over the weekend, accusing it of "caving to corporate pressure".

After the union's refusal, Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu, encouraged the two parties on Monday to resume talks and said her ministry will order a probe into "the allegations of unpaid work in the airline sector".

The nearly four-day strike has impacted more than 500,000 passengers, Air Canada has said. The airline - Canada's largest - operates around 700 flights daily, serving both domestic and international travellers. (BBC)

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