TORONTO – It was a long, cold and uncomfortable Monday night for several Canadian passengers of a grounded Air Canada flight.
Inclement weather and fog caused the cancellation, but it was treatment by Air Canada staff that has them vowing never to fly with the Canadian carrier again.
Richard Kotowicz suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and needed a wheelchair that night.
He says airport staff abandoned him in the check-in area for several hours after giving him a wheelchair. Even though he was left alone by an employee of a different airline, he says Air Canada staff were generally unhelpful and rude.
“I have no hotel room, I need my meds. I take medication for rheumatoid arthritis. One woman said to me: ‘the more you bother me, the less time I have for my work.’ Those were her exact words,” Kotowicz said.
He was among several passengers who couldn’t find a hotel room in time and was forced to sleep inside the airport after an already stressful ordeal.
Monica Lillico, 19, experienced a similar situation.
“I slept outside a Dunkin’ Donuts,” she said. “It was cold hard and really uncomfortable. It was a tiring night, a long night and it didn’t leave a good taste in my mouth.”
Toronto resident Michael Shoreman was the Good Samaritan who helped Kotowics get a spot in line after he says he was abandoned by airport staff in a wheelchair.
“Someone had to step in and do something. It was just awful, terrible customer service and the treatment of Richard was very un-Canadian,” said Shoreman who added that communication was poor between passengers and staff.
Passengers grounded because of mechanical issues are entitled to compensation according to Michael Janigan, special counsel for the Public Interest Advocacy Centre.
Air Canada says weather grounded Monday’s flight, which means frustrated passengers may have little recourse.
In an email response the airline said they plan on “following up directly with the customer (Richard), and this will include speaking with our staff.”
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