Winnipeg family opts to drive home from California after WestJet flight grounded
A Winnipeg family’s Disneyland vacation turned into a 3,000-kilometre trek across the continent after their flight was impacted by the WestJet mechanics strike.
Laura Forsythe told 680 CJOB’s The Start she was in Anaheim, Calif., preparing for a flight home Sunday, when it was suddenly cancelled — just 12 hours before takeoff.
“We originally had a direct flight on Sunday morning at 10:45 to arrive (in Winnipeg) in the afternoon. It was supposed to take us three hours and 14 minutes to get home,” Forsythe said.
“At 9:34 p.m., they sent us an email — first telling us we had a credit to have hotels if we needed them. We had been following the strike, and we thought, ‘Oh, we’re not affected. They haven’t told us yet, it’s already 9:30 p.m., and we’re flying tomorrow morning. We’re going to be fine.’
“Then at 9:45, another email came that said, ‘Oh, sorry, there’s a change in your flight schedule, and at this time we’re unable to offer any further flight options.'”
With a cancelled flight and no way to get home the night before they were supposed to leave, Forsythe and her family sat on the phone until well after midnight, trying in vain to reach a WestJet representative.
While they were on hold, she said, they searched other airlines, but only found pricey business class tickets on Air Canada — and had even less luck with U.S. carriers.
“We had to crunch some numbers, and thought, it’s probably cheaper to rent a car and drive all the way home.”
The 30-hour trek cost $1,200 for the car rental, plus filling the tank five times, as well as hotel rooms — which Forsythe is hoping WestJet will compensate her for.
She’s thankful her family had the means to take the extended trip back, but feels for travellers who were left stranded
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