Cancelled Air Canada flights strand Quebec teens at Vancouver airport
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A scout group of 20 youngsters and two grownup leaders heading from Quebec to a long-planned, tenting journey within the Yukon bought caught in Vancouver as Air Canada began a large cancelling of summer season flights.
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As an alternative of arriving in Whitehorse on Saturday, they rolled out sleeping baggage to crash in a single day on the ground at YVR’s Gate B26 after their flight was first delayed after which cancelled following their connecting flight by means of Toronto from Quebec Metropolis.
They thought there could be a flight on Sunday, however woke as much as discover on the market gained’t be one till at the very least Wednesday night.
“We didn’t sleep properly so the power stage is a bit decrease than it was yesterday, however we’re attempting to maintain a smile,” stated 16-year-old Sophie Labrecque, who’s a part of the Poste Sagarmatha-Mahikan scout group.
Others on the journey like 14-year-old Ludovick St-Pierre have been additionally serving to to rally the group as grownup organizers pressed Air Canada representatives for higher choices.
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They have been naturally hesitant to depart the airport with out some cheap, alternate plans.
After being unable to seek out flights to Calgary or Edmonton, they tried renting two vans regardless that it might imply a 28-hour drive from Vancouver to Whitehorse.
“We don’t need to take the prospect of ready three days for our flight after which it being postponed or cancelled,” stated Labrecque of the reasoning.
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Since their bigger backpacks for the journey have been checked in, they solely had their carry-on baggage.
“We had the concept of placing our sleeping baggage into our little baggage, in order that was the perfect concept we bought,” stated St-Pierre.
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The scout group plans and saves for making an enormous journey like this each three years. That they had been dreaming of perhaps making it to the Arctic Circle.
Air Canada gave them every vouchers for $10 per meal in order that they have been going forwards and backwards to the Tim Hortons and the newsstand.
Final week, Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau introduced in an electronic mail to prospects it should cancel greater than 150 flights a day in July and August on account of “unprecedented and unexpected strains” within the world aviation business.
“Regardless of detailed and cautious planning, the most important and quickest scale of hiring in our historical past, in addition to investments in plane and gear, it’s now clear that Air Canada’s operations too have been disrupted by the business’s complicated and unavoidable challenges,” stated Rousseau.
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It comes as airways in Europe and the U.S. are additionally cancelling tons of of flights simply as individuals are wanting to journey once more after COVID-19 lockdowns stored them from happening trip.
The kids have been staying in contact with their households, who have been conserving the unsure scenario in perspective.
The children are joyful to be on an journey collectively and the dad and mom believe within the group organizers, stated Mathieu Robitaille and Rachel Corbeil, whose 16-year-old daughter Noemie is on the journey.
They have been, nevertheless, irate on the preliminary nonchalance of Air Canada and are nonetheless involved about the opportunity of the group making it to Whitehorse just for return flights to be cancelled.
“They stated all the pieces was booked in order that they have been unable to rearrange something greater than getting them the permission to sleep on the airport,” stated Robitaille. “How’s that for customer support premium!? What the hell are you able to do with $10 per meal in an airport?”
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By Sunday afternoon, St-Pierre stated they have been unable to lease vans and Air Canada was providing to place the group up in a Vancouver resort for the following few days. They may sightsee and return to YVR on Wednesday evening. There was additionally discuss of the opportunity of a flight on Monday.
The group is slated to fly house to Quebec Metropolis from Whitehorse on Sunday, July 10.
“If our flight doesn’t work, we’re going to ask for a refund and return to Quebec or ask to sleep in a resort for the final days of our journey,” he added.
jlee-young@postmedia.com
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