Hundreds more flights cancelled at YVR heading into Christmas weekend

Hundreds of flights that were scheduled to depart Vancouver International Airport Friday have been cancelled, and the airport's president and CEO says it will take time for airlines to rebook stranded passengers amid their busy holiday travel schedule.

Tamara Vrooman told CTV News there were approximately 560 flights scheduled at the airport Friday, and "about half" had been cancelled.

"Today, we're flying about 50 per cent of the flight schedule that we would normally fly on a busy holiday Friday like Dec. 23, and that's largely a result of cancellations by Air Canada and WestJet," Vrooman said.

"They did a very good job of communicating those cancellations in advance to their passengers, and so only people that had confirmed flights came out to the airport. We've been able to process those folks and they're getting on their way pretty much as scheduled."

As of Friday morning, Air Canada is behind 65 cancellations, followed by WestJet at 56, according to YVR’s website.

In an email to CTV News, Air Canada says it proactively cancelled most domestic flights departing during the day, and cautioned that severe winter weather in the forecast may impact Saturday’s schedule.

“At present, we plan we plan to operate flights to Hawaii, Mexico, Korea, and Japan, as well as a couple vacation destinations in the U.S., and our Pacific flights late evening,” an Air Canada spokesperson wrote by email Friday morning.

"Customers should be sure to check their flights are operating before going to the airport," the email continued. "We strongly advise they only go to the airport if they have a confirmed flight and the flight status shows it is operating."

WestJet has also cancelled flights in B.C., Ontario, and Quebec for Friday through to Saturday, though the airline says that timeline is dependent on weather conditions.

On Thursday, Sunwing Airlines cancelled southbound flights out of Kelowna, Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatoon and Winnipeg WestJet up to and including Christmas on Sunday.

Pacific Coastal, a regional airline serving British Columbia, has been forced to cancel at least 16 of its Friday flights.

Vrooman said Friday's storm compounded the effects of the storm that struck earlier in the week, forcing hundreds of cancellations and stranding some in the airport overnight. 

Many people stranded by the two storms have had to spend the night at the airport, and Vrooman said it will take a while for them to get rebooked.

"This is a very busy travel time and every carrier has a full schedule going forward, so finding the gaps to be able to rebook that many passengers does take time," she said.

To help those who are stuck, Vrooman said the airport has taken the "extraordinary step" of booking 400 hotel rooms and securing restaurant gift cards for passengers facing overnight delays.

The hotel and meal vouchers will be available from Friday through Tuesday, allowing people to stay up to four nights for free while they await a flight to their final destination.

YVR has also set up a designated area in the terminal for passengers who are stuck at the airport. Located in Level 3 departures, past U.S. check-in, the area will have cots, blankets, hygiene kits and other supplies available, according to a statement from YVR.

So far, airport staff have handed out more than 10,000 snacks, 15,000 water bottles and 1,500 blankets, YVR said.

Vrooman encouraged anyone travelling this weekend to check with their airlines on the status of their flights before heading to the airport.

"We are really advising, particularly given the local road conditions, to make sure that you have a confirmed flight and that you check in regularly, because things do change rather quickly in a storm event like this," she said.