Passengers encouraged to sue after spending hours stuck on planes at YVR during snowstorm
An air passengers’ rights advocate is encouraging travellers to launch a class-action lawsuit after they were forced to sit in packed airplanes on the tarmac at the Vancouver airport for up to 12 hours during Monday night’s snowstorm.
Gabor Lukacs says what happened was a violation of Canada’s Air Passenger Bill of Rights.
“The law is the airline has to allow passengers to disembark after three hours on a tarmac, and possibly three hours and 45 minutes if departure is imminent,” said Lukacs. “After that – certainly after four hours – passengers have an absolute right to get off. That right was violated.”
The advocate added passengers also have a right to reasonable quantities of food and beverages, and that right was also violated.
In a statement, Air Canada said the long waits at Vancouver International Airport this week were unavoidable. The airline said jet bridges froze and the heavy snow limited carriers’ ability to tow their aircraft to and from gates, creating gridlock and making de-planing the passengers on the tarmac impossible.
“Some people were onboard aircraft for significantly longer periods than expected. While not desirable, having customers remain on aircraft was the only safe option during such a situation,” the statement read.
Lukacs said he doesn’t believe there was no way to get those passengers safely off the plane. “It would have been difficult, it would have required maybe more money, more resources and the airline has to incur those expenses,” said Lukacs, who also argues those passengers should never have been allowed to board in the first place.
”Aircraft should not be leaving the gate, especially if there’s a storm coming without a back-up plan of what happens if they cannot take off and passengers want to get off, as per the law,” he said. “Keeping people for 10, 12 hours on a plane, that’s completely unreasonable.”
The advocate also suggested the treatment of passengers amounts to forcible confinement.
Lukacs expects the airlines will face financial penalties from transportation regulators, and said passengers would have a good case for a class-action lawsuit.
“They should sue the airline for general damages, for inconvenience, for stress, for being kept without food and water for a long time,” Lukacs said. “They should enforce their rights, and they should be seeking very significant amounts.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
RCMP not investigating possible foreign interference cases related to Chiu, Dong: Duheme
Canada's federal police force is not investigating any possible instances of foreign interference in the cases of former Conservative MP Kenny Chiu and Liberal-turned-Independent MP Han Dong, RCMP Commissioner Mike Duheme says.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
Stormy Daniels took the witness stand Tuesday at Donald Trump's hush money trial, describing for jurors a sexual encounter the porn actor says she had with him in 2006 that resulted in her being paid off to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Air France flight from Paris to Seattle lands in Iqaluit after heat smell in cabin
A plane travelling from Paris to Seattle was forced to make an emergency landing in Iqaluit after there was a heat smell in the cabin during the flight.
CFL suspends Argos QB Chad Kelly at least nine games following investigation
The CFL suspended Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly for at least nine regular-season games Tuesday following its investigation into a lawsuit filed by a former strength-and-conditioning coach against both the player and club.
Boy Scouts of America changing name for first time in 114 years, aiming for inclusivity
The Boy Scouts of America is changing its name for the first time in its 114-year history and will become Scouting America. It's a significant shift as the organization emerges from bankruptcy following a flood of sexual abuse claims and seeks to focus on inclusion.
Federal government grants B.C.'s request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces
The federal government is granting British Columbia's request to recriminalize hard drugs in public spaces, nearly two weeks after the province asked to end its pilot project early over concerns of public drug use.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca