Cold weather leads to flight cancellations and delays at Canadian airports

Hundreds of flights have been impacted by a cold snap in parts of Canada, and thousands of airline passengers have been left frustrated as a result.

Air Canada and WestJet posted on social media Friday that travellers should check their flight status ahead of heading to the airport in order to ensure that their trips haven’t been cancelled, but that, unfortunately, some of them are.

WestJet departures at Vancouver International Airport, as of 5:30 pm on January 12, 2024. (Vancouver Airport Authority)

“The extreme cold weather conditions and intermittent precipitation primarily affecting Alberta and the larger prairie region of Canada, are having an impact on our operations. As temperatures drop below the threshold at which de-icing fluid is effective and rendering equipment such as bridges and fuel stations inoperable, out of an abundance of caution for safety, we are limiting the amount of time our crews and ground partners are working outside,” WestJet said Friday.

“While extreme temperatures are most significantly affecting Canada’s prairie region, the severity of the weather events impacting our operations are affecting travel across WestJet’s network,” it added.

More than 100 WestJet flights have been cancelled as a result.

Air Canada didn’t provide a number of cancellations on its website, but a quick glance at the arrivals for Air Canada flights into or out of Vancouver International Airport or Toronto Pearson International Airport Friday night shows a lot of cancellations and delays.

“Winter weather will affect markets across North America this weekend. Our teams are working hard to ensure your safety and run our operations as smoothly as possible,” Air Canada said in a post on X Friday.

Winter weather will affect markets across North America this weekend. Our teams are working hard to ensure your safety and run our operations as smoothly as possible. Please check your flight status on the Air Canada App or at https://t.co/j6Q9rcq8zw pic.twitter.com/hvurFZsORp

— Air Canada (@AirCanada) January 12, 2024

Many passengers have been taking to social media as well to express their frustrations over the delays or cancellations this weekend.

I love supporting Alberta companies wherever I can but @WestJet has let me down over and over lately. My sister’s flights out of Calgary to Ottawa keep getting cancelled, yet @AirCanada’s flights out of Calgary & into Ottawa from other cities are still flying. 🤷‍♀️

— Natasha Kornak (@natasha_kornak) January 12, 2024

Extreme cold warnings are currently in place for much of Alberta, Saskatchewan, BC, and Manitoba, with Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) calling for the Edmonton region that “temperatures ranging from -40 to -48°C, and wind chill values near -55°C” for Saturday and Sunday morning.

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WestJet arrivals at Vancouver International Airport, as of 5:30 pm on January 12, 2024. (Vancouver Airport Authority)

According to YVR’s website, many of the flights from Edmonton have been cancelled.

It comes as the airport has also been dealing with flooding due to a malfunctioning pipe near one of the gates in the domestic terminal.

“Our operations and maintenance teams have secured the area and have repaired the leak. Work is also underway to remediate,” a spokesperson for the airport said.

With files from Laine Mitchell