Sunwing flights delayed, passengers stranded amid network-wide issue

A technical concern has delayed numerous Sunwing Airline flights, stranding some Canadian travellers as the difficulty hampers check-in and boarding.

In an announcement Monday, a spokesperson for Sunwing Journey Group stated the airline’s programs supplier is experiencing a network-wide system concern, affecting carriers globally, together with Sunwing flights.

Sunwing’s web site reveals just about all flights scheduled for Monday — greater than 40 — have been delayed, some by greater than 12 hours.

“We sincerely remorse the affect that is having on our clients’ journey plans and are working diligently with our expertise supplier to resolve the difficulty as quickly as potential,” the assertion reads.

Jean-Hugues Demers from Boucherville, Que., was caught ready within the foyer of a Cuban resort together with his girlfriend and associates for a number of hours in consequence.

The group left Montreal on April 6 for per week on the Paradiso resort in Varadero, Cuba. They had been purported to return to Canada by the tip of the lengthy weekend, till Demers realized their flight had been delayed.

“I simply texted my boss this morning, telling him I will be in tonight, however now I do not know,” he stated.

“The resort has been excellent to us…, ” he stated. “But it surely’s nonetheless sizzling, and we wish to know what occurred.”

By round 4:45 p.m., Demers stated he was now on his approach house.

‘The data does not change’

Anne Estabrook stated she and her youngsters had been ready at a Mexican airport for an hour earlier than staff first informed them the system had crashed. They had been purported to fly again to Vancouver early Monday.

“That was about six hours of sitting on the ground on the Mexico airport with no data of what was occurring in any way,” she stated. 

“Each time they provide us an replace, [they say], ‘I am going to let you know in an hour,'” she stated. “That is occurred six or seven instances, and the knowledge does not change after that hour.”

Six hours of sitting on the ground on the Mexico airport with no data of what was occurring.– Traveller Anne Estabrook

Mario Marcil stated he and his spouse had been ready since round 3 a.m. Monday at Toronto’s Pearson Worldwide Airport to board their flight to Cuba. 

The pair purchased their tickets for a Sunwing flight at 8 p.m. yesterday within the hopes of seeing Marcil’s mother-in-law earlier than she dies. 

Marcil stated he’d been getting quite a few calls from Cuba amid the delay asking once they could be arriving. At one level, he was informed by a member of the family that she had solely hours left to dwell. 

“We do not know if we’ll make it on time,” Marcil stated by means of tears.

In the meantime, the airline says “finest makes an attempt are being made” to tell passengers of how their flights are affected and it is encouraging passengers with journeys scheduled over the following day to test their flight standing earlier than heading to the airport. 

It says it’s additionally co-ordinating resort lodging and airport transfers with its vacation spot administration firm.

Understanding your rights

Sustaining a pc system is the airline’s personal duty, stated Gábor Lukács, a passenger rights advocate. 

“There may be some actually distinctive tasks like being hacked like web cables being lower by chance, however airways must have contingencies,” he stated. 

When a passenger is delayed or a flight is cancelled for causes throughout the service’s management, he stated, the passenger is owed not solely meals, lodging and swift transportation to their vacation spot, but additionally as much as $1,000 in financial compensation for the inconvenience. 

“If different airways are unaffected, then Sunwing has to purchase you a ticket at its personal dime on different carriers’ flights,” he stated.

Joaquin Chanchan, a Montrealer travelling to the Dominican Republic for a household reunion, stated he is going to ensure he submits all of the paperwork essential to be reimbursed for dropping a day of his journey. 

“We had been going to reach at midday, now it is at seven within the night, so the primary day of our trip is misplaced,” stated Chanchan. 

“I do count on compensation for it.” 

Lukács says that is properly inside passengers’ rights, and he urges them to pay attention to airways’ lack of transparency about them. 

“You do not ask the airline about your rights, you inform them about your rights,” he stated.