Like many other Canadians traveling by air these days, Sault’s Shirley Mantilla has a lot to tell.
On a vacation trip to Finland with her husband, their Air Canada flight from Toronto to Frankfurt – a stop on the way to Helsinki – was delayed by about 45 minutes.
“We literally ran to Germany to go through the security with our Canadian passports, running from one terminal to the next, and we were the last to board the flight from Frankfurt to Helsinki,” Mantilla told SooToday.
That was when Mantylas was ready to make the final stage of their trip home to Sault Ste. Marie, that worse difficulties arose.
They left Helsinki on Tuesday, June 28, and flew to Frankfurt first with Lufthansa, then to Pearson International Airport in Toronto via Air Canada.
“We landed and rushed to the other side of the terminal and found out that Air Canada had canceled our flight to Sault Ste. Marie. There was an order for each cancellation of Air Canada, hundreds of people in line. We reached a customer representative and were told that there were no flights to Sault Ste. Marie until Friday, July 1. So we’re basically stuck in Toronto until July 1, “Mantilla said.
The Pearson trial lasted three hours, she calculated.
Mantila and her husband received hotel and food vouchers from Air Canada for accommodation and food while in Toronto.
The couple is among the happiest compared to the suffering of others, Mantilla said.
“We are lucky that we do not have to hurry to work and not have children at home. We saw nursing mothers and elderly people in wheelchairs. It was more stressful for them. ”
“We went to see if we could pick up our luggage and stood in another queue, and the Air Canada spokesman said our luggage was in a back room waiting for a flight on July 1, and if we canceled our flight, our bags would be taken out of that room. and left on the floor somewhere in Toronto.
Mantila and her husband did not cancel their flight home to Sault with Air Canada, but instead of waiting until Friday to return, they booked a flight at extra cost for themselves with Porter Airlines – flying from Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport – to fly to Sault on Wednesday night.
The flight back to Salt is essential for family reasons, Mantilla said.
She hopes their barcode luggage will be sent from Air Canada from Pearson to Sault on a separate plane on Friday.
Airlines have been accused of over-reserving flights – an aggressive move to make up for lost revenue during a pandemic – with insufficient staff or spare planes to deal with the number of passengers, leading to long queues, last-minute cancellations and frustration and difficulties for passengers.
The airlines, for their part, have blamed the federal government for a shortage of federal airport security and customs officials.
The Canadian Air Safety Authority has hired more than 900 inspectors since April.
Many of these inspectors are still in training.
“I think Air Canada is to blame. In fact, I wrote an email to Sault MP Terry Sheen’s office, and they called me this morning. “The email I sent to their office said I didn’t want Air Canada to have more subsidies until they fixed customer service,” Mantilla said.
“Air Canada had to anticipate all delayed trips, and I think the CEO of Air Canada and all the CEOs and board members need to be at Pearson to handle this baggage. When we walked, there were prams, car seats, guitars, bicycles, sports equipment. Some people sleep in Pearson.
“It’s disappointing. They need to divert their workforce from their offices to deal with this stockpile of luggage and focus on delivering that luggage to the right owners and in the right place. “
It was a trip home that Mantilla and her husband will not soon forget.
Mantila’s time spent in Finland – from June 1 to June 28 – was more pleasant, a mixture of business and pleasure.
In addition to visiting family and friends and enjoying trips to national parks, Mantyla – who is the Honorary Consul of Finland in Sault Ste. Marie – met with Finnish President Sauli Niinisto and Finnish Foreign Ministry officials to discuss the necessary trade with North America, as Russia’s war against Ukraine has complicated Finnish trade with its eastern neighbor.
There were also light moments.
“They reminded us that we lost to hockey at the 2022 Winter Olympics,” Mantilla said with a laugh.
“It simply came to our notice then. Even the president mentioned it with joy. ”
As for future travel plans, Mantila said she and her husband are planning a trip to Arizona, but will fly from Michigan.
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