Latest news with #NavCanada
Economic Times
5 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
YVR flight delays cause travel chaos as Air Canada, WestJet offer free rebooking
Inbound flights to YVR experienced an average delay of 1 hour and 23 minutes, with 67 delays and 10 cancellations reported for arrivals, and 24 delays and 9 cancellations for departures. In response, Air Canada permitted passengers traveling to or from YVR on May 30 to change bookings without penalty, subject to availability. (File Photo) Synopsis Vancouver Airport faced major flight disruptions on May 30, 2025, due to unexpected equipment issues during runway maintenance. Air Canada and WestJet offered free flight changes to affected passengers. Nav Canada implemented traffic management to handle delays, averaging over an hour for inbound flights. While Air Canada's waiver was for May 30, WestJet extended it to May 31. Flight disruptions at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) on Friday, May 30, 2025, led Air Canada and WestJet to offer free flight changes to affected passengers. ADVERTISEMENT An unexpected equipment issue caused the delays during overnight paving work on the airport's north runway. This prevented the runway from reopening in the morning, resulting in significant flight delays and cancellations. To manage the situation, Nav Canada implemented a temporary Traffic Management Initiative (TMI) to maintain safe and efficient air traffic flow. According to FlightAware, inbound flights to YVR flight delays averaged about 1 hour and 23 minutes. YVR's arrivals page reported 67 delays and 10 cancellations, while the departures page listed 24 delays and nine cancellations. In response, Air Canada allowed passengers traveling to or from YVR on May 30 to change their bookings without penalty, subject to availability. The airline advised customers to check their flight status online or call 1-888-422-7533 before heading to the airport. This waiver applied only to Friday's travel, but Air Canada indicated it might update its policy if disruptions continued. WestJet also offered free flight changes for travelers affected by YVR flight delays or cancellations at YVR on May 30-31. The airline apologized for the inconvenience and emphasized the need for shared accountability among Canada's air travel partners. ADVERTISEMENT Other Canadian carriers, such as Porter and Flair Airlines, did not provide similar waivers. Flair Airlines acknowledged the delays and advised passengers to check their flight status regularly and adjust their airport arrival times are encouraged to monitor their flight information and contact their airlines for the latest updates. (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel) (Catch all the US News, UK News, Canada News, International Breaking News Events, and Latest News Updates on The Economic Times.) Download The Economic Times News App to get Daily International News Updates. NEXT STORY
CTV News
5 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Flight cancellations, delays at YVR airport after runway closure
An Air Canada flight taxis to a runway as a WestJet flight takes off at Vancouver International Airport, in Richmond, B.C., on March 20, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck More than 20 flights at Vancouver International Airport have been cancelled and others are facing delays after crews were forced to keep one of the runways closed Friday. Overnight paving work on the airport's north runway wasn't completed in time due to 'an unforeseen equipment issue' with an asphalt supplier, a YVR spokesperson said Friday afternoon. 'While our teams work to find a solution, YVR will be operating exclusively using our south runway today,' the spokesperson said. As of 2 p.m., 23 flights had been cancelled. The spokesperson said airport staff will be in the terminal to assist passengers. Those flying in or out of the airport on Friday are advised to check flight information with their airline or via the YVR website before coming to the airport. In a statement Friday afternoon, Nav Canada, the agency responsible for controlling civilian air traffic throughout the country, confirmed a temporary Traffic Management Initiative had been put in place due to runway work conducted by the airport authority. 'While we strive to minimize their use, TMIs help maintain a safe flow of traffic and ensure the quantity of aircraft in a given airspace or airport remains manageable,' said the statement. 'Our team is working actively to keep air traffic moving safely and as efficiently as possible and minimize the impact of the TMI.'
CBC
27-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
Frustrated Air Canada pilot slams air traffic controller shortage to passengers on flight
Social Sharing An Air Canada pilot vented his frustrations over air traffic controller shortages on a recent flight, telling passengers to write their MPs to address ongoing delays at the country's airports. The pilot on a Vancouver-Montreal flight on Saturday vented over the intercom, with a CBC reporter capturing a portion of his message announcing a 50-minute delay. In the message, he says that the air traffic controller sector — which is operated by private company Nav Canada — was understaffed, and sick calls had meant there was a holdup at the airport that day. "It's very annoying," the pilot told the passengers. "It's cost the company a lot of money. It costs business people a lot of money, and it would be great to have this addressed." WATCH | Air Canada pilot sounds off about air traffic controller shortages: Air Canada pilot vents about delays, blaming air traffic controller shortage 9 hours ago Duration 2:04 Air Canada says it's been hit by unexpected delays at Vancouver International Airport in recent weeks. The airport confirms a shortage of air traffic controllers has caused delays and cancellations. As Jon Hernandez reports, a pilot expressed his frustrations to a plane full of passengers on Saturday. The pilot goes on to accuse Nav Canada of keeping the number of new trainees low in order to keep overtime numbers high and asks passengers to tell their representatives about it. "Please write your MP and let them know what's going on and how it's affecting your business or your leisure plans," he urged. The frustration expressed by the pilot comes a little over a month after Nav Canada said that "resource constraints" had led to dozens of flights being cancelled or delayed. An Air Canada spokesperson confirmed in a statement that Nav Canada restrictions had affected airline schedules at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) for several weeks. A spokesperson for the company denied that trainees were being intentionally rejected as unsuitable to protect overtime, and said it is scaling up training operations in response to the shortage of air traffic controllers. An airline CEO and the pilots' union both say that the labour crunch is a nationwide challenge that requires a wholesale effort to solve. Small airlines affected Tim Perry, the president of the Air Line Pilots Association, says that if a passenger gets frustrated with delays, it's natural that pilots would too. He said that, however, delays were not the fault of individual air traffic controllers but rather a systemic issue. "If we need more people at work, let's direct our collective attention to doing that," he said. "We really need to look to the future, work collaboratively with all the stakeholders," Perry added. "That means government. That means labour representatives, and it means employers, to make sure that the entire system is staffed appropriately." Teara Fraser, the CEO of Indigenous-owned airline Iskwew Air, operates short flights between YVR and Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island. While the flights are very short — usually clocking in just under half an hour — Fraser says there have been delays every day on most flights, and the shortage of air traffic controllers wasn't "a new problem, but it's certainly worsening." "We're getting delays of anywhere between 20 minutes and two hours," she told CBC News. "When you are operating a 20-25 minute flight, that's significant." Fraser urged the federal government to properly fund airports, airlines and service providers. Nav Canada cites training efforts In a statement, a Nav Canada spokesperson confirmed that "resource constraints" necessitated a temporary traffic management initiative on Saturday, which led to delays. The spokesperson said the company is in the process of significantly expanding its training capacity across the country to meet growing demand. "We currently have close to 500 students within our training programs today," they said. "By 2028, we expect the total number of students who will have entered [Nav Canada's] training program to be approximately 1,500." The spokesperson denied the Air Canada pilot's allegation that air traffic controller trainees were being intentionally rejected in order to protect overtime. "Prior to any decision being made to cease training for an individual, a multidisciplined panel evaluates opportunities to further support the candidate or to restream them to another program," the spokesperson said. "We leave no stone unturned in supporting a candidate's success." The spokesperson said that close to 40 licences for air traffic controllers had been issued in Vancouver over the last year, something they called a clear sign of progress. "Certain specialties in Vancouver present some of the most complex training environments in the country, due to the intricate airspace structure and high traffic volumes," they added.
CBC
27-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Frustrated Air Canada pilot rants to passengers stuck on tarmac
An Air Canada pilot ranted to passengers about the shortage of air traffic controllers while the Montreal-bound plane waited on the tarmac at Vancouver International Airport on Saturday. A CBC News reporter recorded the pilot who accused NavCanada of intentionally causing the shortage.
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Yahoo
What's going on at YVR? Delays, delays, delays for a third straight day
Vancouver International Airport experienced widespread delays for both arriving and departing flights for the third straight day Wednesday as a result of resource constraints and staffing shortages, including among air traffic controllers. Nav Canada, which owns and operates Canada's civil air navigation system, posted on its social media late Wednesday morning that the delays were affecting some flights at the airport, and YVR's website listed most arrivals and departures as delayed, including domestic and international flights travelling to or from destinations as far away as Japan and South Korea. In a statement to Postmedia News, NavCan spokesman Jonathan Bagg said the delays were specifically due to personnel shortages in the air traffic control tower and that a traffic management initiative, which reduces traffic to safe levels, was in place. As of Wednesday afternoon, traffic management was still in place, with no indication as to when it might be lifted. On Monday, the reason for the implementation of traffic management was listed as 'a mix of factors including demand, construction and resource constraints,' while on Tuesday the reason was narrowed to a lack of air traffic controllers. YVR has already had six days with a significant number of delays so far this year, the same number of alerts it had in the almost full year between August 2023 and July 2024. 'It is important to note that multiple stakeholders contribute to the overall operational environment — this includes airlines, airport operations, security, baggage services, and Nav Canada, among others,' said Bagg. 'Ensuring that we have the staffing required to provide safe, efficient air navigation services remains a top priority for Nav Canada, and we continue to take the steps needed to support service continuity across the country.' Nick von Schoenberg, president and CEO of the Canadian Air Traffic Control Association, said the shortage of air traffic controllers is a Canada-wide issue but is particularly acute at YVR due to higher standards to qualify than at other airports. He said that while most air traffic control towers require staff to undergo training of between 90 and 120 training days after transferring, YVR requires those transferring to the airport to undergo 150 training days to re-certify. 'Vancouver has less people and it's a hard place to qualify,' he said. 'Hard to do an apples to apples comparison because Vancouver doesn't take people off the street while most others do.' Von Schoenberg has been raising concerns about a labour shortage in the industry for the past few years and believes the federal government should institute minimum staffing requirements. He said at least several hundred more air traffic controllers are needed across the country to make up for current shortages, with the root of the staffing crisis stemming to the cutting of 720 positions by Nav Canada during COVID-19. In an attempt to address staffing shortages, Nav Canada announced a partnership with CAE, a Canadian flight simulation and training company, last April to add capacity to train 478 more students in flight simulation and training by 2028, alongside the roughly 500 students currently undergoing training. Bagg said the partnership will allow the organization to 'accelerate its staffing objectives by five years.' Last year, YVR welcomed the second-most travellers in its history with 26.2 million passengers transiting through the airport, a five per cent increase from 2023's 24.9 million visitors. The record number occurred in 2019, when the airport welcomed 26.3 million passengers. YVR officials recommend that passengers check their incoming flight status with their airline before going to the airport. Flight delays continue at Vancouver International Airport for second straight day Stunning tulip farms open across Canada this month — here's where to go and when
