Sunwing ..... uh-oh

[Kip Powick]

Passengers described it as a “hostage taking,” a “nightmare,” even going so far as to call it a real-life version of movie The Terminal, where Tom Hanks’ character lives in an airport.

About 200 people were left stranded in Charles De Gaulle airport for 36 hours when their flight to Toronto was repeatedly delayed.

The flight, through Toronto-based discount airline Sunwing Airlines Inc., was scheduled to leave Paris on Monday at 11:55 a.m. local time. But a problem with the plane’s hydraulic system forced repeated delays, which then produced confusion about when the plane would finally take off.

Rescheduled departures meant passengers returned to the gate multiple times — once in the middle of the night — only to be told the flight was no longer leaving.

“Delayed, cancelled, delayed, cancelled. Hopes are very low,” said Marianna Tsenglevych, reached on her cellphone in Paris, where she was on a business trip. “They keep shifting us. Airport, hotel, back to airport.”

Weary, livid passengers — including many children under 10, elderly people, and a pregnant woman, according to Tsenglevych — claim they were given little detail about the delay or specific times of rescheduled flights. One said she got more information by checking the airline’s website than from employees in the airport.

Passengers were provided with accommodation, but had little rest during the ordeal. A group of underage travelers on an exchange said they stayed in the lobby after they were not given gender-separated rooms. The girls didn’t want to stay in the same room as the boys.

One man became so desperate and angry, police were called to avert a potential fight with an airport employee, according to Tsenglevych. She also said one woman had told her she’d missed an important surgery.

“All we really want now is to get back to Toronto,” Rachel Gropper, another stranded passenger, wrote in an email to the Star Tuesday. “Sunwing refuses to tell us the truth and they refuse to bring in another aircraft to take us home.”

Daryl McWilliams, vice-president with sales and marketing at Sunwing, said Tuesday that “Murphy’s Law struck.”

Initially a Sunwing mechanic detected a fault with the plane’s hydraulic system. Then it was discovered that a part needed to be brought in from London.

The part was picked up by a Sunwing employee, checked as baggage, then picked up at Charles De Gaulle — where it then went missing for seven hours.

“You’ve heard of missing baggage? Missing part,” McWilliams said.

Throughout the delay, Sunwing provided meal vouchers, free calls, and accommodation at a hotel, he said. Passengers were notified that they can either have a full cash refund for their flight, or a refund for the round-trip expense in travel vouchers, to be used in the future.

“It’s difficult for the passengers to not be upset, we understand that. But I can assure you we’ve done all that we can in difficult circumstances,” he said.

McWilliams said the company did the best it could to keep the passengers informed throughout the delay. It hired Swissport International Ltd., a ground-handling service, to represent the company in the airport.

But Tsenglevych said it was confusing dealing with people who didn’t seem to be associated with the airline. McWilliams said Swissport employees usually wear company uniforms, but he couldn’t guarantee it in this instance.

Some passengers were so fed up they are considering buying another ticket home, despite inflated same-day prices.

Indeed, Gropper said passengers were told in a written letter that they could cancel the flight and have $150 to put towards another flight — but that was after they already checked their baggage.

“It’s a nightmare scenario,” Gropper said.

Passengers were finally told the flight would leave would leave Paris at 11 p.m. local time. Gropper was reached by the Star at 11:15, still waiting in the airport.

According to Toronto Pearson International Airport arrivals schedule, the flight was expected to finally touch down in Toronto 2:30 a.m. Wednesday.

WG221 Timeline (France time)

11:55 a.m. Monday: Three-hour delay announced.

3 p.m. Monday: Flight delayed for more than 12 hours.

2 a.m. Tuesday: Passengers leave hotel rooms to catch flight.

3:30 a.m. Tuesday: Flight delayed for the third time.

11 a.m. Tuesday: Flight delayed for the fourth time.

11 p.m. Tuesday: Flight scheduled to depart.

11:15 p.m. Tuesday: Passengers still waiting to check in.

2:30 a.m. Wednesday, Toronto time: Flight scheduled to land in Toronto (8:30 a.m. Paris time)

[J.O.]

CDG has a reputation as a black hole when it comes to the delivery of AOG parts.

[Johnny]

News Flash - to the Travelling Public

You get what you pay for

...like everthing else in the free world.

[SkyBlazer]

Is anyone really surprised ????

Sunwing has and will remain to be a second rate customer service airline.

[blues deville]

Another day in the life of a Canadian charter airline...........

bd

[jkavafian]

Seems to me that their level of service in this case was adequate (hotels, meals etc), the only major lack was the lack of a backup aircraft.

Correct. But what angers people are the creeping delays. Tell passengers the flight is cancelled today and will leave tomorrow afternoon. This way people can rest or do something else with their time instead of staying around the airport. I know in this case Sunwing thought they would have the plane repared.

Sadly the race to the bottom of the price range is not unique to the airlines, it is pervasive in Canadian culture in almost every industry. No one is promoting quality, they are promoting price.

[Johnny]

Sadly the race to the bottom of the price range is not unique to the airlines, it is pervasive in Canadian culture in almost every industry. No one is promoting quality, they are promoting price.

And who's fault is that? The consumer - who perpetually wants something - for nothing.

[Kip Powick]

Sadly the race to the bottom of the price range is not unique to the airlines, it is pervasive in Canadian culture in almost every industry. No one is promoting quality, they are promoting price.

And who's fault is that? The consumer - who perpetually wants something - for nothing.

I don't entirely agree......take this industry for example.................along came LCC and their overhead was less so they pushed the fares down, the public accepted it and the LCC still made money. As a result the public perception was that anyone other than the LCC's were gouging the traveling public so everyone had to lower their prices to stay in business........then the public came to expect much lower fares than ever before.

In my opinion, in this industry we have "led" the public down the path to expect cheap fares and when you think about it.................the fares for flying anywhere now are ridiculously low. 15 years ago could you imagine flying YYZ to YVR in a "jet" airplane for $129.99????

The fault lies not with the consumer but with the capitalists that will put their price as low as possible as long as there is a slight profit margin, and at times the margin is just too low to sustain the other guy who may still be entrenched with "old school" economics.

PS...this is a discussion that can really open a can of worms with respect to employee expectations, consumer expectations, global economy etc ..............have at.

[Guest alkaid]

I don't entirely agree......take this industry for example.................along came LCC and their overhead was less so they pushed the fares down, the public accepted it and the LCC still made money. As a result the public perception was that anyone other than the LCC's were gouging the traveling public so everyone had to lower their prices to stay in business........then the public came to expect much lower fares than ever before.

In my opinion, in this industry we have "led" the public down the path to expect cheap fares and when you think about it.................the fares for flying anywhere now are ridiculously low. 15 years ago could you imagine flying YYZ to YVR in a "jet" airplane for $129.99????

The fault lies not with the consumer but with the capitalists that will put their price as low as possible as long as there is a slight profit margin, and at times the margin is just too low to sustain the other guy who may still be entrenched with "old school" economics.

And we should be grateful. Cheaper fares for passengers allowing many more to travel. And more jobs for guys like me who didn't have a chance back in the old day with the pilot jobs mostly reserved for the military types and their buddies or Seneca grads. Now I get the chance to fly the big iron and lots of different types too to interesting locations and for pretty good coin as well.Although, not as much as the top dogs used to make. Oh well.

[Mitch Cronin]

And we should be grateful. Cheaper fares for passengers allowing many more to travel. And more jobs for guys like me who didn't have a chance back in the old day with the pilot jobs mostly reserved for the military types and their buddies or Seneca grads. Now I get the chance to fly the big iron and lots of different types too to interesting locations and for pretty good coin as well.Although, not as much as the top dogs used to make. Oh well.

Somehow, I doubt you'll be flying any "big iron" anytime soon. But you're quite right, cheaper fares mean wages are pushed to their lowest limit and employers are forced to hire the lesser qualified prospects, because those with value won't work for peanuts.

[blues deville]

I would like to know where some of these low fares are hiding. A family trip (YYZ-YYG) to PEI is costing me $600 per head this month. Air fare includes the free cookies. The other Canadian airline had identical pricing with a bonus connection through YHZ. There are no other options by air for Canadian travelers.

[blues deville]

Somehow, I doubt you'll be flying any "big iron" anytime soon. But you're quite right, cheaper fares mean wages are pushed to their lowest limit and employers are forced to hire the lesser qualified prospects, because those with value won't work for peanuts.

I believe Sunwing's bigger iron is being flown by European pilots this summer as part of their deal with Signature Vacations.

[J.O.]

The Sunwing aircraft involved is a B767-300 that has been sub-chartered for the summer from EuroAtlantic Airways in Portugal.

[Guest alkaid]

Somehow, I doubt you'll be flying any "big iron" anytime soon. But you're quite right, cheaper fares mean wages are pushed to their lowest limit and employers are forced to hire the lesser qualified prospects, because those with value won't work for peanuts.

Been flying the Big Iron for years, except for the composite stuff.

Of course you are wrong again. Westjet is an LCC. The people I compare myself to make loads of money. Over 100K for a third year cojo when all is included. And their new-hires have plenty of experience. I should know.

Meanwhile the always profitable LCC, Southwest Airlines, the only major not to go or nearly go bankrupt has among the highest paid pilots in the U.S.

Of course, they do have a tendency to strike a lot less and don't have intransigent unions. You should try observing how the employees work sometime.