Airline employee calls police, threatens group with "no fly" list.

[Rookie50]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scot ... -1.3914148

Yes, once again I'm sure every passenger was an out of control lunatic who deserves to be put on a no fly list, and maybe Tasered, too. Uhmm, OK. Simply for wanting to get home.

AC's response when queried by the media? No comment, naturally.

"Air Canada did not answer specific questions, such as when the next flight was available, if it was safe to send passengers out on a five-hour winter drive at 3 a.m., or what the Air Canada employee meant by warning passengers they could be put on a no-fly list. Air Canada also did not explain why the employee called the police."

Accountable.

When Delta banned that guy, CEO practically held a press conference. AC wasn't so eager to talk about this, it seems.

[crazyaviator]

Is AC back to its old tricks of "cant touch me i'm in a union and those passengers were meant to pee on mentality???

[Rockie]

"I have never been so scared for my life and others as I was that night. I held back my tears in the car because I was so upset about the baby's seat conditions and how she kept getting sick due to the long travel day and reckless driving," Rideout said.

Yup, an article that starts with how upset the passenger was with their cab is sure to contain nothing but objective facts right?

Air Canada itself also doesn't do direct flights from Halifax to Sydney so it must have been one of the 2nd or 3rd tier, but don't let that affect your thinking either.

Airlines also are not responsible for how far a passenger has to drive to get to the airport or home.

But...and this is important...it was a CBC article about Air Canada in a negative light, so a double whammy for certain people.

[CpnCrunch]

I'm confused. I thought CBC was a raving socialist fake news outlet

(Not making any comment on the validity of the facts in this story. It looks like a he said, she said situation).

[Rookie50]

I'm confused. I thought CBC was a raving socialist fake news outlet

(Not making any comment on the validity of the facts in this story. It looks like a he said, she said situation).

Correct. CBC is a unreserved cheerleader of government funded programs like the formerly, and likely quite possibly one day again, G'ovt supported AC. History repeats.

You know, GM Canada got castigated for taking government support, as did the big US banks, I understand that was paid back -- a loan. Think Canada even made a profit.

Has AC paid back all, or any, of the taxpayer monies it has recieved over the decades?

[Rockie]

Has AC paid back all, or any, of the taxpayer monies it has recieved over the decades?

Blah blah blah. Same old tilt against a former crown corporation (not defending that aspect by the way), but what does that have to do with the current thread?

[Old fella]

Has AC paid back all, or any, of the taxpayer monies it has recieved over the decades?

Blah blah blah. Same old tilt against a former crown corporation (not defending that aspect by the way), but what does that have to do with the current thread?

Always and inevitable there is usually another side to such stories as portrayed in the public media. I can't imagine any airline employee conducting him/her self in such a manner unless some aggressive behaviour was directed towards said employee either through words/actions. I travel on airlines and have witnessed obnoxious behaviour, downright rudeness directed at airline people. It's not the airlines and their operations that concerns me as a passenger be it WX delays, missed connections or whatever. It being around some of the idiot passengers. I like the airlines but I hate some of the people ya have to lug around.

[Rockie]

You're a wise man Old Fella. I hope to meet you one day.

[Zaibatsu]

I'm confused. I thought CBC was a raving socialist fake news outlet

(Not making any comment on the validity of the facts in this story. It looks like a he said, she said situation).

Correct. CBC is a unreserved cheerleader of government funded programs like the formerly, and likely quite possibly one day again, G'ovt supported AC. History repeats.

You know, GM Canada got castigated for taking government support, as did the big US banks, I understand that was paid back -- a loan. Think Canada even made a profit.

Has AC paid back all, or any, of the taxpayer monies it has recieved over the decades?

As I recall, a lot of GMs funding was in the form of stocks that were bought under the Harper Government and paid for with one of the many unbalanced budgets he ran.

He then sold the stock at about 50c on the dollar so he could show a surplus heading into an election year, costing you, me, and everyone in this country about a couple hundred bucks.

I suppose that's not GM's fault... ...but it's a glaring example of corporate welfare where public dollars are misappropriated to private corporations. A true capitalist society would have let GM fail and let investors pick it up for pennies on the dollar... ...letting the previous shareholders take the fall for the risk they assumed.

[Black_Tusk]

Has AC paid back all, or any, of the taxpayer monies it has recieved over the decades?

Blah blah blah. Same old tilt against a former crown corporation (not defending that aspect by the way), but what does that have to do with the current thread?

Always and inevitable there is usually another side to such stories as portrayed in the public media. I can't imagine any airline employee conducting him/her self in such a manner unless some aggressive behaviour was directed towards said employee either through words/actions. I travel on airlines and have witnessed obnoxious behaviour, downright rudeness directed at airline people. It's not the airlines and their operations that concerns me as a passenger be it WX delays, missed connections or whatever. It being around some of the idiot passengers. I like the airlines but I hate some of the people ya have to lug around.

There must be two sides to this story, I do not believe this woman's account whatsoever.

[fish4life]

Even worse was her complaining about the cab driver speeding like Air Canada had some decision in that.

[JBI]

AC's response when queried by the media? No comment, naturally.

"Air Canada did not answer specific questions, such as when the next flight was available, if it was safe to send passengers out on a five-hour winter drive at 3 a.m., or what the Air Canada employee meant by warning passengers they could be put on a no-fly list. Air Canada also did not explain why the employee called the police."

Accountable.

When Delta banned that guy, CEO practically held a press conference. AC wasn't so eager to talk about this, it seems.

Why should AC give a comment when they are investigating what happened?

When Delta banned "that guy" the media was reporting that they banned him because he was a Trump supporter. That's not the case - they banned him because he was threatening other passengers with racial slurs. That's a reason to be banned regardless of what your political beliefs are.

Air Canada has a he said/she said situation and now have Gabor getting involved - I'd suggest not saying anything is the right thing to do. CBC doesn't decide what compensation/punishment the passengers should get - the courts (or CTA or Human Rights Tribunal) will be the one to decide.

I'll be the first to admit that tempers get the better of both passengers and airline employees, especially during days of weather delays. But not everything that gets reported to a media outlet needs to be commented on by a company (airline or otherwise). Remember the flight attendant who had her picture taken in the engine inlet and a passenger called ABC. The airline's response should have been - "no comment" - instead even giving a response let the story move along even more.

So, while sometimes customer service may take a hit, from a legal perspective, it's not necessary to comment on every story that gets published by a media outlet (CBC or otherwise).

For the record, I have represented airlines in legal proceedings stemming from situations such as these and have also been asked numerous times to provide a comment or media interview for aviation related incidents. I have come to the conclusion that, generally speaking, the folks requesting an interview are not trying to bring an understanding to the situation but rather garner more readers/listeners/viewers.

[Rookie50]

For those who don't believe any airline rep could act like that, reread the article. Another woman confirms the account in full. That's three independent witnesses then.

All must have called each other, planned out what they would say, all just to get their names in CBC news. Right. Believe what you wish. Curious how many pax saying the same thing before its credible, is required.


As for the last comment, AC investigate? Investigate what? They dont have to compensate for this. What, then going to do a press release saying what they found, either way? Not a chance -- they already know exactly what happened is my guess, and don't want to talk about their employee's behaviour.

I'll tell you why the crown corp angle is relevant. I've met a few, not many considering how many flights I've taken - I'll admit but a few, AC employees over the years like this guy is portrayed, who had trouble functioning on a perfect day, without issues. Like -- a bit scary. It's not hard for me to believe this story, cause where they came from -- crown corp days, cause the govt supports you -- who cares what you hire.

The interesting fact is I've chatted briefly with quite a few pilots over the years while flying commercial, and can't day I've ever met one that was anything less than happy to say a quick hello and cordial, at least. Most FA's, too are pretty good - a few rare exceptions -- and these are the higher stress jobs, one would think. Worst I've experienced , would be ground agents, like these guys had. A few want to take everyone's head off who checks in, and that's with no operational issues at all. Reminds one strangely of checking in at a medical clinic -

[YYZSaabGuy]

[quote="Rookie50"]I'll tell you why the crown corp angle is relevant. I've met a few, not many considering how many flights I've taken - I'll admit but a few, AC employees over the years like this guy is portrayed, who had trouble functioning on a perfect day, without issues. Like -- a bit scary. It's not hard for me to believe this story, cause where they came from -- crown corp days, cause the govt supports you -- who cares what you hire.[quote]

That's terribly interesting, because I've met a few, not many considering how many flights I've taken - I'll admit but a few, Westjet employees over the years like this guy is portrayed, who had trouble functioning on a perfect day, without issues. Shockingly, I've even met a few people totally not associated with either the airline industry or the government or any kind of crown corporation, not many considering how old I am - I'll admit but a few over the years like this guy is portrayed, who had trouble functioning on a perfect day, without issues. Plus, I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night, so, y'know..............

Bad service is bad service. Neither airline, nor any crown corporation, has a monopoly on it. Why is this so difficult for CBC to understand?

[Rookie50]

Bad service is bad service. Neither airline, nor any crown corporation, has a monopoly on it. Why is this so difficult for CBC to understand?

Very true. I think though, threatening to ban people simply for complaining, or expecting the airline to get them home, is way over the top. I'd call that abusive, actually. Way beyond bad service.

Instead - I don't see why the default position is to always vilify the customer with a simple "I can't believe any (AC employee) would act in that way. Must be customers fault.

Really. If the cop thought the passengers were being abusive, he would have done something, like asked them to leave, at least. He didn't.

Here's my thought. There are some passive agressive customer service reps out there, who come to work every day angry, from their own lives or career failures, who feel entiltled to be jerks because of their union. Those who work in the airlines -- don't tell me this isn't the case.

FWIW I've flown a lot of airlines, BA, Westjet, Austian, Swissair, even AA, I don't recall...the same attitude a few at AC seem to have. My last trip through London, the train was really late - delayed -- and we should have missed the flight -- not the airlines fault.

BA was fantastic and put us at the front of the line so we made it - I did ask for help very nicely, but still -- amazing. That service is unheard of at AC. Being nice or respectful as a pax, which I am, is irrelevant to many of them. But BA, -- that's Europe, of course. Fierce competition for airline Pax -- improves service.


Maybe it's luck of the draw, I'll admit. I think it's older legacy employees they can't get rid of due to the union, more likely. And there's where unions don't serve anyone properly, they protect crappy employees.

My advice if that unhappy serving people-- quit your job --go find something not involving people...we will all be happier.

A few jerk customers out there --doesn't justify poor behaviour to everyone else, is my point.

[B208]

I'm confused. I thought CBC was a raving socialist fake news outlet

They are, and this story they ran is a really good example of manufactured news. Too bad certain people can't see that with regard to so much of the other stuff CBC runs.

[Meatservo]

I find CBC to be generally decent-quality news, although many people who prefer a more right-wing point of view do seem to feel that a lot of the mainstream news outlets show a left-wing bias, insofar as there could be thought to be two "sides" in reporting truthfully about "a thing that happened". I suppose the CBC does take a different approach to presenting the news compared to more "right wing" outlets, preferring to write about it rather than barking at it, which is easier for some people to understand.

Anyway, I found this particular article to be strangely written, nonetheless. Are we to believe that the mild-sounding man in the third paragraph went up to an agent, politely and casually asked what his "options" were, only to have the Air Canada man "freak out" and go get the cops? This sounds to me like someone is exaggerating: either the reasonableness of the query, or the unreasonableness of the response.

It does indeed sound like some facts are being omitted, which happens all the time, except here there are enough facts being omitted that it isn't really worth reporting on in the first place.

[Rookie50]

http://www.capebretonpost.com/news/loca ... fly-l.html

This account has more detail, and even AC seems to acknowledge something didn't go right near the bottom, and Gabor whoever is taking their side. These were FT Mac workers just wanted to get home. Don't strike me as attention seekers. But hey, believe what you wish.

I'm sure like every passenger, they are whiny liars.

Why do those who hate the pax so much, keep working in the industry? . Don't get it.

"As for the Browns and MacIntyre, they’ve spent the last week not knowing if they are on the no-fly list with the airline, something that worries them because they rely on air travel for work in Alberta and are scheduled to return in March.

“It’s scary,” said Brad Brown. “We just want this to be over with — we want to know if we will be able to fly.”

Assuming article is correct -- of course -- That is completely unacceptable of Air Canada to leave FT Mac workers with no other option, in the limbo of a no fly, fear left by their employee.

Well done, AC.

[Old fella]

Let me see if I got this straight. Three individuals missed the connection to YQY along with according to the article 2 dozen more. The airline arranged ground transportation for those affected travellers albeit a long drive. There gents in question inquired what their options are. Now by their own admission they travel frequently so they know it's either take ground ride or await another connecting flight to YQY when available. "Being on a plane for 8 hrs and then a 6 hr drive to YQY" to quote. To me this where this story gets a little fishy. The airline made arrangements to get you to your destination, so I am not convinced there isn't more to this. Getting/arranging ground trip from YHZ to YQY for a few dozen people on short notice is no easy feat this time of year. Night time at that and it's a f--- of a drive. I live in the neck of the woods in question. I believe AC did the best it could.

[Rookie50]

Let me see if I got this straight. Three individuals missed the connection to YQY along with according to the article 2 dozen more. The airline arranged ground transportation for those affected travellers albeit a long drive. There gents in question inquired what their options are. Now by their own admission they travel frequently so they know it's either take ground ride or await another connecting flight to YQY when available. "Being on a plane for 8 hrs and then a 6 hr drive to YQY" to quote. To me this where this story gets a little fishy. The airline made arrangements to get you to your destination, so I am not convinced there isn't more to this. Getting/arranging ground trip from YHZ to YQY for a few dozen people on short notice is no easy feat this time of year. Night time at that and it's a f--- of a drive. I live in the neck of the woods in question. I believe AC did the best it could.

I'm sure they do, OF. Can't control weather or duty limitations. Not about any of that, only @ someone who called the cops on them and threatens a no fly list. I don't get supporting an employee like that, but I'm assuming the article is true and three or 4 witnesses said the same thing.