Ottawa launches investigation into delays at Pearson Airport in Mississauga
Published August 8, 2022 at 5:07 pm
Ottawa is launching an investigation into flight cancellations and a host of other issues that have plagued Pearson Airport in Mississauga and other air travel hubs across the country for the past four months or so.
The federal government said that the House of Commons transport committee voted unanimously today (Aug. 8) to look into flight delays and cancellations, lost luggage, lengthy waits/delays inside terminals and other issues that have angered and frustrated tens of thousands of travellers using Canada’s airports since the spring.
The committee is expected to hold its first hearing by the end of this week.
Federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra, also MP for Mississauga Centre, will be among those to testify before the committee.
Both airports and airlines in Canada and abroad have been faced with a huge surge in travel this summer after people returned to air travel in unexpectedly huge numbers since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted in the spring.
Problems at airports have been compounded by staffing shortages affecting both airlines and federal agencies.
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The result has been flight cancellations/delays and a host of other issues inside Canada’s airports, most notably Pearson, which has been hardest hit.
Federal Transport Minister Omar Alghabra will testify before a committee looking into delays and other problems at Pearson and other Canadian airports.
A recent study showed that Pearson Airport had the most flight delays of any airport in the world between the end of May and July 19.
According to data provided by airline tracking service FlightAware, Pearson led the way among hundreds of international airports with 52.5 per cent of its scheduled flights delayed between May 26 and July 19.
The data, which was compiled for CNN in the U.S., also revealed that Pearson stood fourth in the world for flight cancellations, with 6.5 per cent of its flights grounded during the same time period.
Last Friday, the head of an embattled Pearson Airport vowed to continue fixing major issues that have plagued Canada’s largest airport.
In a news conference at the airport, Greater Toronto Airports Authority CEO Deborah Flint said improvements are already being made to reduce the number of delayed and cancelled flights, get travellers through the airport faster and connect passengers more quickly with their luggage.
She promised that airport officials and their partners with the airlines and federal government will continue to address the issues to improve the travel experience for passengers and once again position Pearson as an internationally respected and award-winning airport.
Flint said the situation airports are facing is historic in aviation history. Airports and airlines were caught off guard by the large numbers of people who returned to air travel so quickly once pandemic restrictions were eliminated earlier this year.
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