Pre-Christmas travel mess: YVR limiting international arrivals after snow delays

Vancouver International Airport has announced that as a result of a massive snowstorm on Tuesday, it is being forced to cancel more flights in the coming days in order to get stranded passengers home.

On Tuesday, the snowfall resulted in hundreds of flight delays and travel chaos, and while flights are now getting off the ground, many of the issues still persist on Wednesday.

Vancouver International Airport snow-stranded passengers on December 20, at 8 pm. (Sukhwant Dhillon/AM 600 Sher-E-Punjab Radio)

Passengers at YVR on December 20, 2022. (Sukhwant Dhillon/AM 600 Sher-E-Punjab Radio)

“To help depart aircraft from the airport and get crews and passengers safely on their way, we will be temporarily limiting arriving international flights for approximately 48 hours, effective Wednesday, December 21 at 7:00 a.m.,” YVR wrote on its website.

That means many travellers who are coming home for the holidays or visiting loved ones might be stuck in limbo until December 23, just days before Christmas.

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While some flights are now departing and passengers might now be able to get to their final destinations, it’s not good news for the many people still left waiting at the airport for hours.

“YVR staff and our partners continue to work to assist travellers in the terminal who are unable to depart, or who are waiting for luggage,” YVR said.

Latest update from #Yvr staff. Video by Sukhwant Dhillon @AM730 #Aircanada pic.twitter.com/ZGhW6Czhbr

— sherepunjabradio (@SherEPunjab600) December 21, 2022

Adding that cancellations at this time are still “expected” despite Environment and Climate Change Canada having ended its snowfall warning for Metro Vancouver as of Tuesday afternoon.

However, a new warning has been issued through to Thursday for the region for cold arctic air with temperatures expected to hover near -25°C.