WestJet cancels more than 460 flights because of consecutive days of extreme cold
WestJet says multiple days of frigid temperatures in the Prairies are having a "compounding" impact on operations.
The airline was forced to cancel at least 120 flights on
Sunday. It has cancelled at least 464 flights since Thurs‐ day, according to a post on the company's website.
Extreme cold rendered deicing fluid ineffective in some western Canadian cities for the second morning in a row, said WestJet public relations strategist Madison Kruger.
"Our crews are working overtime, our equipment is in the cold," she said. "These flights are all interconnected. It's an interconnected net‐ work.
"So when you get to your fourth day of this, and you never fully are able to recover your operation from the first day, the impacts just continue to grow."
WestJet did manage to re‐ cover several aircraft left stranded by the weather across their network, added Kruger, which "put [the air‐ line] in a better position."
She also said the airline is mandating crew rests to keep employees safe while operat‐ ing in the bitter cold.
WestJet also announced flexible flight change and can‐ cellation guidelines for guests travelling to or from Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba.
But because of the delays and cancellations, the airline's contact centre is running high wait times, said Kruger.
"Guests are obviously looking for re-accommoda‐ tion options," she said. "We don't have imminent oppor‐ tunity to reschedule them on a flight that's likely within their window."
The airline is asking guests not to contact them unless they're within 72 hours of their flight's scheduled depar‐ ture.
When asked how their op‐ erations have been affected by the frigid temperatures, Air Canada told CBC News on Saturday that, to deal with the impacts of the weather, they have put a flexible re‐ booking policy in place so cus‐ tomers can change travel plans without paying addi‐ tional fees.
The Calgary Airport Au‐ thority is advising passengers to check the status of their flights before leaving for the airport and to give them‐ selves extra time to adjust to changing circumstances and delays on the roads and at the airport.
"Working in extreme
weather conditions poses its own challenges. Prolonged extreme weather events local‐ ly and around the country can result in delays," an au‐ thority spokesperson wrote in an email to CBC News.