Swoop travel 'nightmare' keeps sisters from getting to P.E.I. for family gathering

Sisters travelling with Swoop airline from Toronto to Charlottetown last weekend to attend a family gathering say they endured a travel "nightmare," complete with panic, confusion and "rude beyond rude" customer service.

Edna and Christine Chaisson were excited to be flying to Prince Edward Island Friday night to attend their brother's 65th birthday party the following evening. It was supposed to be a big surprise, with only one other family member knowing about the plan.

The plane tried to land in Charlottetown on that coldest night of 2023 so far, but strong winds diverted it to Quebec City to refuel. Then they were flown back to Toronto.

During the flight, the sisters told CBC News that Swoop staff were reassuring passengers they would be well looked after and "accommodated" once on the ground.

'Everbody's starting to panic'

"They started promising things. 'Don't worry, we're not going to leave you stranded.' 'Cause everybody's starting to panic at this point because we hadn't eaten, we hadn't had anything," said Edna Chaisson. "The bathrooms were totally disgusting because we have been sitting on the plane for this long already."

She said that over the course of the 12-hour ordeal, they were given about an inch of water each to drink and a small bag of pretzels.

Once in Toronto, Edna Chaisson said, they were told they couldn't leave the plane because the doors had frozen shut.

"At that point, we're tired. Everybody's tired. There's babies on board. There's people needing medication that's in their suitcase." 

They did eventually deplane, but said the passengers were left to fend for themselves in the airport, with Swoop staff being no help at all.

'The worst customer experience'

"I feel like we were treated more like animals," said Edna Chaisson.

"Like animals ... they didn't care what we went through," added her sister, calling it "the worst customer experience I have ever experienced."

The women ended up sleeping on the floor of a hotel room that fellow passengers were able to book Friday night, and got their own hotel room the next day.

Swoop arranged for an emergency flight to take them to Charlottetown on Sunday morning.

"It was just for us passengers that [were] on that nightmare," said Edna Chaisson.

They arrived 36 hours after they were supposed to have arrived, and the day after their brother's birthday party.

No compensation eligibility, Swoop says

The Chaisson sisters believe they and their fellow passengers should be compensated.

"At least compensate us for the money we put out, and apologize to all of these people for being so rude — they were just rude beyond rude," said Christine Chaisson.

Swoop told CBC News in an email that because this was a weather diversion for safety reasons, the people on the plane are not eligible for compensation. 

"Travellers may be able to contact their travel insurance provider to discuss coverage of any uncovered costs incurred," the email said. 

The women said passengers on board the flight have set up a Facebook group and are considering legal action against the airline.