Patience will be required at Atlantic airports this summer

Staff recruitment problems make the resumption of air services more difficult in this summer season.

The Flight Late company helps passengers seek compensation from the airlines following a cancellation or delay.

In recent weeks, the company has seen the number of complaints jump, explains CEO Jacob Charbonneau.

” It’s a bit of a perfect storm across Canada in terms of air travel. »

There are a lot of delays, a lot of cancellations and there’s a lack of airline personnel. This means that we have a lot of last minute schedule changes. People spend a lot of time in airports and often they are not informed of what is going on. That’s kind of the situation. Now we have five times more complaints than a few weeks agohe explains.

Disruptions in Moncton and Halifax

In the Atlantic, airports are mainly experiencing disruptions to flights from or to major cities such as Toronto.

This is particularly the case at the Roméo-LeBlanc International Airport in Greater Moncton.

” It’s not just the airlines, it’s all the companies at the airport. Recruiting people is a big problem, »

For its part, the administration at the international airport Stanfield of Halifax explains in a press release that after two years of very little travel activity, our industry is working hard to rapidly ramp up services to meet the significant increase in travel demand.

It is added that some of the airport’s partners are facing challenges due to the national labor shortage.

Therefore, it is assessed that travelers at major Canadian hub airports may experience delays or other travel impacts, argues leah batstoneSpokesperson for the International Airport Authority Stanfield from Halifax.

Lack of staff at Air Canada

Air Canada explains that the company is affected by a lack of staff at airports. Added to this are problems with the baggage management system, which forces airlines to cancel flights or to deliver baggage with some delay.

In a statement, Air Canada says processing delays at airports continue to translate into flight delays and, in some cases, cancellations that can have a snowball effect on customers.

” This is happening even as we continue to recruit and now have 32,000 employees, almost as many as in 2019, and we are cautiously securing 80% of our 2019 summer schedule. »

At the Moncton airport, it is hoped that the labor shortage will soon be resolved across the country.

We expect congestion at major airports to improve in the coming weeks with the removal of the requirement to be vaccinated to work in an airport. I tell passengers that the experience will improve, but they should expect delays over the next few weeksdeclares Courtney Burnsfrom Moncton Airport.

In the meantime, airport authorities in the Atlantic encourage travelers to avoid passing through major cities, to prepare well and to arrive early for their flight.

According to a report by journalist Stéphanie Blanchet