An Air Canada aircraft covered with snow and ice is moved by a tug as a Westjet aircraft is seen being moved behind it at Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, B.C., on Dec. 21, 2022.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
Canada’s busiest airport is braced for more travel chaos as Environment Canada forecasts a winter storm will hit Toronto starting Thursday, with rain, snow, high winds and freezing temperatures threatening people’s holiday plans.
Heavy snowfalls and frigid weather in parts of Canada caused commercial flight delays and cancellations across much of Western Canada earlier this week, creating headaches for hundreds stuck in terminals such as Vancouver International Airport, which said Wednesday it was limiting international arrivals to reduce the congestion on the tarmac.
The arctic cold snap that hit British Columbia on Sunday then began breaking temperature records in Alberta on Monday evening, leading to hundreds of flights being delayed or cancelled out of Edmonton and Calgary, where Canada’s second-largest carrier WestJet Airlines Ltd. is headquartered.
Craig Minielly, a Vancouver-based commercial photographer who travels frequently, said he had planned for some complications as he prepared to spend three weeks in and around Merida, Mexico, starting with a connecting flight to Toronto that was scheduled to leave Monday at 10:30 p.m. But the flight was delayed because attendants needed in the cabin were stuck in Calgary, then it was cancelled early Tuesday morning because of blowing snow and a lack of visibility on the runway.
Around 2:30 a.m. Tuesday morning, he reclaimed his two checked bags. He said he thought he was stuck there until the subway into the city restarted because he couldn’t brave the outside wait for a cab with hundreds of others while wearing loafers and his “Mexico weather” clothes. He eventually offered to help a cabbie struggling to clear the snow off his windshield in another part of the terminal and secured a ride back downtown, offering to share it with another woman nearby stuck in travel purgatory.
“A lot of people had it a whole lot worse, still do,” he said in a phone interview from his home Wednesday afternoon.
The flight delays and cancellations mar the aviation industry’s busiest time of the year, and cloud a keenly-watched test after a summer of airport chaos.
The weather was clear at Toronto’s Pearson International Airport on Wednesday. But the screens displaying arrivals and departures were filled with delays as the problems cascaded through the crucial travel hub.
Air Canada AC-T, which has about 935 daily departures, had a completion rate of 98 per cent in December, but the recent storms reduced that number to 87 per cent. “Despite the weather we still moved about 127,000 people” on Tuesday, said Peter Fitzpatrick, an Air Canada spokesperson.
“A disruption to part of the system can affect the whole operation,” Mr. Fitzpatrick said. “For example, an aircraft can be scheduled to fly from Vancouver to Calgary to Toronto and then Montreal in one day, but if it is held up by weather anywhere, then it is late for its next flights. This impacts customers, baggage handling, and workers’ schedules throughout our system.”
The Montreal-based airline, Canada’s largest, is flying 85 per cent of its prepandemic schedule, and plans to move 2.23 million people between Dec. 21, and Jan. 8.
“The vast majority will travel as planned, but unfortunately in some cases travel plans are disrupted by weather,” Mr. Fitzpatrick said. “We appreciate this is disappointing and, in those cases, we work very hard to get people on their way. Already we are seeing a recovery in Vancouver; for example all of our international flights operated Tuesday evening.”
WestJet cancelled 546 flights between Sunday and midday on Wednesday and warned of more to come. The airline said it is trying to rebook as many customers as possible but cautioned that customers might not be able to find another flight amid widespread delays and backlogs.
“We understand the importance of holiday travel and the frustration and disappointment this has caused,” the airline said on its website. “There is very limited reaccommodation availability due to the high demand for travel this time of year and the significant impact across the industry.”
Morgan Bell, a WestJet spokeswoman, said temperatures of -29 C in Calgary were limiting the effectiveness of aircraft de-icing fluids, and making breaks for workers a key safety measure.
The summer of 2022 marked a return to the skies for many people, as the pandemic eased after more than two years of on-again, off-again lockdowns and travel restrictions. The resurgence overwhelmed airlines and airports, which were still required to enforce COVID-19 rules, and caused long lines in terminals and tarmac delays.
Mr. Fitzpatrick said Air Canada is flying 85 per cent of its 2019 schedule, with a work force of 35,600, an increase of 1,000 from prepandemic times.
Airlines that cancel or delay a flight are required to rebook passengers within 48 hours or provide a refund, according to the Canadian Transportation Agency, or CTA. Air Canada has made allowances for the bad weather by allowing passengers at affected airports to rebook or receive travel vouchers.
WestJet sent Mr. Minielly an e-mail offering him a full refund if he cancelled his trip or rescheduling it with a partner airline. He chose to fly to Mexico City on Saturday night.
John Lawford, executive director and general counsel of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre, said the new passenger protection regulations that came into effect in September help stranded passengers get these refunds. But under these rules, he said, airlines do not have to provide food outside the plane or put people up in hotels if their flights are grounded by uncontrollable weather.
Mr. Lawford said all air travellers should rejoice that the Federal Court of Appeal ruled this week that the new regulations are valid under Canadian law after the airlines tried to get them thrown out.
“If you want the attitudes of the airlines, it’s they’d rather not have them at all,” he said. “At least we got them, as imperfect as they are.”
Eric Atkins
Mike Hager