Air Canada Passenger Claims Fellow Travelers Were Removed from Plane Due to Vomit-Covered Seats.
An Air Canada passenger has alleged that two of her fellow travelers were escorted off a plane after they refused to sit on seats that were covered in vomit for a five-hour flight. Susan Benson, the passenger who witnessed the incident, took to Facebook on August 29 to share her account.
According to Benson, before their flight from Las Vegas to Montreal took off, three passengers encountered difficulty in finding their seats due to a foul smell. It was later discovered that someone had vomited in that area during the previous flight. Despite attempts by Air Canada staff to mask the smell with coffee grinds and perfume, the customers raised concerns about their wet seats and visible vomit residue.
Benson stated, "When the clearly upset passengers tried to explain to the flight attendant that the seat and seatbelt were wet and there was still visible vomit residue in their area, the flight attendant was very apologetic but explained that the flight was full and there was nothing they could do." She added that the staff seemed hesitant to provide blankets to cover the seats.
The passengers engaged in a heated discussion with the staff for several minutes. Eventually, the pilot intervened and informed two of the passengers that they would have to leave the plane. Benson recounted, "[T]he pilot came down the aisle and very calmly knelt down and told the two ladies that they had two choices: They could leave the plane on their own accord and organize flights on their own dime, or they would be escorted off the plane by security and placed on a no-fly list!"
Benson emphasized that her fellow passengers were not being rude, but rather upset and firm in their stance. Security guards were eventually called to escort the two women off the plane.
Expressing her concern, Benson concluded, "I cannot stop thinking about these two ladies. They did nothing wrong. I am ashamed to be a Canadian and ashamed of Air Canada."
In response to the incident, Air Canada stated that they are taking the matter seriously and conducting an internal review. They acknowledged that their operating procedures were not followed correctly in this instance. The airline has reached out to the affected customers, apologizing for the substandard care they received and addressing their concerns. "We remain in contact with them about this matter," Air Canada added.
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