General

Vancouver passengers sat on New York tarmac for 12 hours

Flight arrived to find airport terminal practically shut down

Travelers from Vancouver are demanding answers from Cathay Pacific and New York’s Port Authority after they were prevented from deplaning for more than 12 hours after landing Tuesday morning. Another Cathay Pacific flight from
Vancouver was also stuck on the tarmac in New York for more than seven hours. The first flight had been delayed four hours Monday night, but managed to take off and then land at JFK airport just after 2 a.m. Tuesday morning. That was despite a major snow storm that saw 1,500 inbound flights to New York cancelled Monday. However, when the plane arrived, the crew were told there was no staff available to get luggage off the plane and no gates were available into which passengers could disembark. Cathay Pacific says weather conditions prevented the airline from using busses to get passengers safely from the plane to the terminal. The airline has apologized to passengers and is considering compensation.

CBC News

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