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By Jaryn Vecchio

Traveling Nightmare

‘Never seen a mess this bad’: Sunwing cancellations causing headaches for local travel agent

Jan 17, 2023 | 5:11 PM

It’s been over three weeks since Christmas but Mike Bayda, the owner of Lobstick Travel in Prince Albert, has been practically working non-stop.

“Dec. 24, that’s the last time I’ve gotten to spend time with my family,” he said.

Bayda has been receiving call after call from clients whose flights have either been delayed or cancelled thanks to the horrific weather experienced over the holiday break.

Sunwing was arguably hit the hardest, however, other airlines like WestJet and Air Canada also had to reschedule flights.

The biggest difference between the airlines is the situation for Sunwing has only gotten worse, Bayda says.

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On Tuesday, the company announced it would be cancelling most of its flights out of Regina for the rest of the winter. Many of these flights would have flown passengers who had to already reschedule their holiday trips due to the weather.

“In over 30 years, I’ve never seen a mess this bad,” Bayda said.

Since Sunwing made this announcement, Bayda has been working to book his clients on new flights through different airports. Sunwing is offering impacted customers the ability to transfer their vacation package to same-day departures from different cities, however Bayda noted, in Saskatoon, he’s running into similar problems.

“The worst part, I was doing final payment with a couple of customers in the morning and by the afternoon their flight was cancelled,” he explained.

The precise reason for Sunwing’s latest decision isn’t exactly clear. The only thing the company has acknowledged is that they’re dealing with extenuating circumstances.

Whatever the case, Bayda doesn’t believe Sunwing should get 100 per cent of the blame. He thinks Transport Canada has done little to help passengers and airlines.

“Sunwing did cancel these flights and yes these people are stranded, but what is the root cause?” Bayda asked. “Transport Canada needs to take a little bit (of responsibility), they dropped the ball on COVID and they’re dropping the ball on this.”

In a statement to paNOW, Transport Canada stated it is aware of Sunwing’s cancelled flights.

“Like any other Canadian air carriers, Sunwing is a private-sector company and, as such, makes its own business decisions to remain viable and competitive. The frequency of flights, the services offered, and the prices charged by airlines are based on market forces and not government regulation,” the statement said.

However, if passengers encounter issues with refunds, delays or cancellations that a passenger cannot resolve directly with an airline, Transport Canada says the passenger may reach out to the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA).

Bayda says he’s already working on getting his clients properly compensated by the company, something Sunwing has promised.

Travel agents on the other hand don’t appear to be lucky as he explained they only get compensated by each airline through the number of sales they bring in.

Editor’s Note: This story was updated at 5 p.m. on Jan. 18, 2023 to include a statement from Transport Canada.

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Jaryn.Vecchio@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @princealbertnow