It seems the long-standing ire with Air Canada is now transcending outside of just North America.
On Monday, former NHL player Jeremy Roenick voiced his displeasure with the airline after flying out of a congested Montreal Trudeau Airport and now a motorsport publication out of London is accusing Air Canada of kicking off more than 30 passengers from a Montreal flight for “no good reason.”
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Motorsport Week, an independent and FIA-accredited motorsport publication, is alleging Canada’s biggest airline got police to remove dozens of passengers from a Montreal-London flight on Monday night.
The England-based publication says the apparently kicked-off passengers included an senior couple, a pregnant lady, and F1 staff. Motorsport Week says no reasons were given by the airline or police and no support was offered once disembarked.
Before calling Air Canada’s service “absolutely horrendous,” the publication said nobody who was allegedly kicked off the plane has received any of their bags or belongings as of Tuesday afternoon.
This also included a pregnant lady. F1 had to step in and arrange hotels for everyone and replacement flights via BA the following day. Bags stayed on the plane, so nobody has any belongings with them. Absolutely horrendous service from Air Canada. https://t.co/jyXzFndIOk
— Motorsport Week (@MotorsportWeek) June 21, 2022
On Tuesday morning, Patrick Brailey said his 71-year-old and 66-year-old parents were aboard flight AC866 — the flight in question. He says they were escorted off the plane by armed police and that they received “no explanation” for being disembarked and cited an Air Canada employee saying it might have been because they weren’t wearing face masks or were drunk.
Brailey continued a lengthy Twitter thread saying that his parents were not drunk and that they both “religiously wore their masks.” He said his parents were left in the Montreal Trudeau Airport terminal and were told by Air Canada they were not allowed to fly for 24 hours. He alleges the airline said any additional travel fees would be their responsibility because they were offloaded.
He ended by calling the situation stressing, worrisome, and a “disgrace.”
2/2..they were offloaded. Airport staff said we just have to wait for the crew report – the crew who are enroute to London… So, stressed and worried, my brother has managed to book them on @airtransat flights to LGW via Toronto costing nearly £1300. What a disgrace @AirCanada
— Patrick Brailey (@patbrailey) June 21, 2022
Jess McFadyen, the Director of Digital Strategy at Motorsport Week and says 23 people were pulled off the plane, “totally at random,” and shared a video on Twitter which has since amassed over 13,000 views.
— Jess McFadyen (@JessMcF1) June 21, 2022
Another passenger called the treatment by Air Canada “shocking” on flight AC866 and said employees were “on a power trip.”
Daily Hive has reached out to Motorsport Week and Air Canada for additional comment.