Ongoing unrest in the Middle East has triggered global flight disruptions, impacting leisure and business travellers worldwide. That situation became considerably worse today (March 2) when Air Canada announced it has extended its suspension of flights to Dubai and Tel Aviv through March 22. Canada’s largest airline says the flights will not resume until March 23, at least for now. Since Saturday, the Travel Health Insurance Association of Canada (THIA) says nearly 6,000 flights have been cancelled worldwide related to the Middle East conflict. The Dubai International (DXB) airport, the world’s busiest international airport for 12 consecutive years and the busiest globally by seat capacity, has been closed since February 28th. Airspace in the region Read more
cancelled flights
Winter Storms Wreaking Havoc on Travel in Eastern USA and Canada; More Than 15,000 Flights Cancelled
Winter storms across wide swatches of the eastern United States and Canada, as well as a bone-chilling polar vortex, have sparked one of the worst travel weekends in recent history. More than 10,000 flights in and out of the United States had been cancelled for today (Sunday, Jan. 25) as of 9 a.m. ET. If you figure only 100 people per flight, that’s a million passengers left stranded on a single day. More than 4,000 flights in the US were cancelled on Saturday, and nearly 2,000 have already been kyboshed for tomorrow (Monday). There are reports of major power outages Read more
A prominent travel agents’ group says WestJet customers should be fully reimbursed for any losses they suffered as a result of the WestJet mechanics strike. It says travel advisors who had to work to rebook clients should be compensated. The Association of Canadian Travel Agencies today (July 2) issued a press release saying WestJet “should take full responsibility” for the strike. “ACTA is deeply concerned about the impact of the recent WestJet disruptions on travellers, travel agencies, and travel advisors,” the group said. “While we’re relieved the strike has concluded, we recognize the significant challenges it has created. “We’ve heard Read more
The carnage continues. But WestJet executives and the union representing striking airiline mechanics appear set to resume bargaining. WestJet has announced the cancellation of a total of an astounding 832 flights as it deals with a surprise strike by the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA). WestJet today said it has cancelled an additional 410 flights, raising the total to more than 800 flights since the strike notice was issued just days in advance of Canada Day long weekend. That’s roughly 110,000 passengers with cancelled flights. “Missed vacation goers, stranded business travellers and long-weekend family reunions have been disrupted due Read more
Welcome to Canada Day travel chaos. With WestJet mechanics out on a surprising strike, the airline has cancelled 150 flights for today (Saturday, June 29), and it warns more could be coming. Mechanics walked off the job at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time last night (Friday, June 28), an action the union says is perfectly legal despite a ministerial order from the Justin Trudeau government that union reps and WS undergo binding arbitration to come up with a new bargaining agreement. A couple of hours later, WestJet announced it will cancel 150 flights, possibly affecting 20,000 travellers. It also warned that Read more
