Air Canada (ADH2) has announced that it will be suspending select operations to popular vacation destinations from January 24, 2022 until April 30, 2022 because of continuing uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Suspended destinations include: Antigua, Aruba, Samaná, Curaçao, Exuma, Grenada, Puerto Plata, Santo Domingo, Bermuda, Grand Cayman, Havana, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Saint Martin/Sint Maarten, and Saint Kitts and Nevis.
On December 15, 2021, the Canadian government advised its citizens to avoid non-essential travel outside of Canada, regardless of vaccination status.
To help ensure that no Canadians are stranded abroad, the airline said it plans to operate a number of one-way commercial flights from affected destinations in order to return customers from suspended destinations back to Canada.
This Air Canada (ADH2) announcement came as news emerged separately of a group of ‘partying’ passengers from Canada becoming stranded in Mexico. The group’s Sunwing Airlines charter flight was canceled due to what the airline described as theirdisruptive behavior onboard.” No other airlines, including Air Canada (ADH2), are willing to fly the group back to Canada, reported CNN.
With regards to the suspended sun destination flights, Air Canada (ADH2) said that travelers affected by the temporary suspension of the listed destinations will be issued a full refund.
“At first glance, 2022 can be mistaken for its predecessor. Omicron ushered in a wave of renewed uncertainty that coincided with the holidays and impacted our industry yet again,” VP Air Canada Vacations Nino Montagnese said.
“But unlike the heavy restrictions that kicked off 2021, this setback is a molehill, not a mountain. And this year is nothing like the last. We’re stronger, wiser and well-prepared to manage the potential effects of COVID-19.”
It’s been a rocky start to the year for many North American airlines, with rising COVID cases hitting staffing levels and weather adding to already stretched operations. Many have been canceling flights in January and over the Christmas period as a result.