Prince Rupert’s Sheryl Sadorski is upset her parents and other Air Canada passengers were “held hostage” at the Prince Rupert Airport (YPR) for more than eight hours on Jan. 5.
Scheduled to depart at 10:50 a.m., the Air Canada Express flight didn’t leave Digby Island until just after 6 p.m. last Monday. Jazz Aviation, the operator of the flight, said the delay was caused by an icy runway, with YPR’s manager saying this is not the case.
Sadorski said passengers weren’t given the option to leave and weren’t provided with any food until hours into their wait.
“My dad is diabetic and there was no food for them,” she said, adding the vending machine took her father’s money.
“He suffered.”
Sadorski questioned why passengers weren’t sent back to Prince Rupert for the prolonged delay, or given the option to cancel their ticket.
Adding to the frustration, Sadorski said it was difficult to get ahold of airport staff and YPR’s Air Canada Express agent throughout the day. She claims it wasn’t until she got ahold of an Air Canada representative in the late afternoon that light snacks were offered to passengers.
“You couldn’t talk to anybody. Nobody wanted to own up to what was going on,” Sadorski said, adding she eventually was told equipment failures for de-icing the plane and apron caused the delay.
Debra Williams, manager of corporate communications for Jazz Aviation, said the delay was because of weather and runway conditions.
“We understand the inconvenience caused by weather delays. While these situations are completely outside of our control, we do all possible to minimize the inconvenience to passengers and get them on their way as soon as it is safe to do so,” she said.
“Due to the delay, passengers were provided with snacks ... approximately two hours after what would have been the scheduled departure time,” Williams said.
But Richard Reed, Prince Rupert Airport manager, said the runway had nothing to do with the postponement. Airport staff reports the runway curfew was acceptable for use all day, aside from 11 a.m. when it started snowing.
“The issues with Air Canada are their own. They’re related to their ground crews and to their agents not providing food for their customers,” said Reed.
Reed said de-icing equipment owned by Air Canada’s contractor failed, so the plane was unable to leave.
When another de-icer became available after the afternoon Hawkair flight departed, Air Canada-users were boarded, but the equipment failed again and passengers remained onboard until another was obtained.
Reed said it’s the airline’s decision not to send its customers back to Prince Rupert.
“The city provides the ferry and the bus, but they’re at the command of the airlines. If the airline says to take its customers back, they go back,” he explained.
Reed said the airport will work with Air Canada to provide accurate information to customers in the future and said a contingency plan needs to be developed so people don’t go without food again.
“We need to be considerate ... and get them food, water, comfort and information,” he said.
“There’s no reason for what happened. Absolutely none at all.”