A cancelled flight from Toronto to the Bahamas on Saturday has left many WestJet passengers spending part of Christmas Eve at the airport.
âThey delayed our flight about five times,â Jason Bodi, who was supposed to be on the 3:35pm flight on Saturday to Nassau, told CTV Toronto on Sunday. âOur hotel is about $900 a night in Atlantis, so I donât know whoâs going to compensate that.â
Bodiâs family had hoped to be in the Caribbean on Saturday evening, but after a long day of waiting for flight WS 2756, they ended up stuck in an airport hotel instead of lazing on a beach. Bodiâs family, along with the flightâs other passengers, had to depart more than 24 hours later on Christmas Eve.
Fellow passenger Jasmine Bethel who is from the Bahamas was just hoping to be home in time for the holidays.
âMy job ended on Friday, so this was the earliest I could get home,â she told CTV Toronto. âSo, especially coming home this late, itâs really disappointing I canât get home when I wanted to get home.â
In a statement, WestJet explained that adverse weather was to blame, and that when the aircraft was delayed on its trip prior to the scheduled Bahamas flight, it created an unfortunate domino effect.
âIt was further delayed getting to the gate due to congestion on the ramp,â the companyâs statement read. âIt was at this point our crew was not able to continue as they had reached their flight duty time limit.â
For passenger Alyssa De La Cruz, who is six months pregnant, this trip was supposed to be a relaxing family getaway thatâs now costing her extra time and money.
âFor a big corporation like this, you guys should be a lot more organized,â she said of the airline. âYou guys should have a backup crew or something. Like, itâs Christmastime so you guys tell us, âOh, itâs going to be busy.â Well, yes -- don't you guys know itâs going to be busy for yourselves as well?... Itâs not your first year having people travelling during holidays, so thereâs no excuse.â
In an email to one of the passengers, the company apologized for the inconvenience.
âPlease know that it is never our intention to delay our guests in their travels, as we understand what an impact this can have,â the email, which was shared with CTV Toronto, said. âWe will follow up by email with a formal apology and an offer of compensation.â
Despite the snowstorm hitting southern Ontario on Sunday, the passengers were all able to depart on their rescheduled flight.
Nearly 2.7 million passengers are expected to travel through Toronto Pearson International Airport, Canadaâs busiest airport, between Dec. 17 and Jan. 7.
With a report from CTV Torontoâs Miranda Anthistle and files from The Canadian Press