Sunwing issues formal apology to customers for travel delays

Sunwing Airlines has issued a formal apology after cancelled flights left travellers stranded over the holiday season.

“We regret that we did not meet the level of service our customers expect from Sunwing,” the airline said in a statement signed by Sunwing Travel Group CEO Stephen Hunter and Sunwing Airlines President Len Corrado.

Hundreds of people were stranded after the Canadian-owned and operated travel company cancelled their flights amid severe weather conditions during the week of Christmas.

Besides being stranded in another country, travellers also faced extensive checked-luggage delays.

A baggage belt issue at Toronto Pearson International Airport impacted select customers that travelled between Dec. 24 and 27.

READ MORE: Sunwing airlines network-wide system outage causes delays

Sunwing says it is working to address some technical issues with communication flow and flight alert notifications.

“We know that we cannot replace the time lost or disruption experienced during this holiday season,” Sunwing said.

“But we would like to reassure our customers that we are committed to doing better and regaining their trust in the weeks and months ahead.”

Sunwing also entirely cancelled its operations at two Saskatchewan airports last week until Feb. 3, citing extenuating circumstances

Travel agents in the province say Sunwing’s cancellation of all flights from the Saskatoon and Regina airports for the month could short them thousands of dollars.

The chair of the House of Commons transport committee, Peter Schiefke says Canadians deserve answers for what he calls “unacceptable delays and cancellations”.

I will be convening a meeting of the Transport Committee and will be calling on VIA Rail and Sunwing to appear. Canadians deserve answers for the unacceptable delays and cancellations seen over the holiday season.

— Peter Schiefke (@PeterSchiefke) January 3, 2023

Schiefke plans to convene a meeting and call for Sunwing Airlines to publicly explain what caused the travel chaos.

The federal Conservatives and NDP are requesting the urgent testimony of Liberal transport minister, Omar Alghabra.

“It’s not enough for the Liberal minister to tweet that the situation was unacceptable,” NDP transport critic Taylor Bachrach in a statement on Wednesday.

NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said earlier Wednesday that the holiday travel woes that left passengers stranded show why there should be more competition in Canada’s airspace.

In a press conference, Singh said the lack of choice for passengers is also making flying less affordable.

He’s calling on the Liberal government to find ways to make the airline industry more competitive.