“Safety guides every decision we make,” an airline spokesperson said after the Thunder Bay flight was canceled for the second time in two weeks.
THUNDER BAY — On Tuesday, passengers who had planned to relax on Punta Cana’s beaches for months ended up disembarking, collecting their luggage and heading home for the night.
A direct WestJet flight to the Dominican Republic had to be canceled due to unscheduled maintenance, the airline said.
Multiple passengers told Newswatch they were told there was a problem with the plane’s auxiliary power unit.
They said WestJet initially considered flying them to Toronto to board another plane, but that would have required hours of circling in the air to burn off fuel before landing.
The flight was then cancelled.
“Every decision we make is based on safety, including the difficult decision to cancel a flight if unscheduled maintenance is required,” an airline spokesperson told Newswatch in an email.
“All affected guests are scheduled to board a new flight to Punta Cana tomorrow. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause,” she wrote.
In an interview, one passenger expressed frustration and said he and his wife had booked a vacation months in advance.
“I’m glad we didn’t have to leave with any safety issues. Obviously, you’re looking forward to (the trip). The day is here, you’re excited, and now you’re delayed. So it’s very frustrating, especially when the plans are cut short, but we know what tomorrow holds. It’s frustrating for sure.”
Today’s new departure time has been set for 10am
Two weeks ago, a flight from Thunder Bay to Punta Cana was canceled due to frozen toilets, forcing passengers to reschedule their reservations for the next day.
However, the replacement flight had to be diverted to Toronto due to maintenance issues, further delaying the passengers’ arrival in the Dominican Republic.
Thunder Bay passengers aren’t the only ones experiencing delays.
Last week, passengers experienced delays at the Sault Airport when a de-icing truck broke down.
