Air Canada Red Cards Passenger - All He Did Was Ask for Duty-Free

The Canadian Transportation Agency's April 7, 2008 Decision No. 160-C-A-2008 deals with a complaint by a man I will call Mr. Passenger against Air Canada.

Mr. Passenger flew from Vancouver to New Zealand by way of Honolulu in February 2007. At Honolulu he changed to Air New Zealand but alas, it was not a smooth change.

While in the air about two hours before reaching Honolulu, there was a disturbance involving Mr. Passenger, Air Canada flight attendants, and an unfulfilled request to buy duty-free cigarettes at the wrong time.

It comes down to one person's word against another's, but there is no doubt of the result:

Mr. Passenger was red-carded.

Apparently if you cause problems on board, Air Canada will give you a "Passenger Warning Card". I hope these don't become collector's items on e-Bay or everyone will be trying to get them.

Anyway, Mr. Passenger was delivered to the authorities in Honolulu, interviewed, and let go without charges. Air New Zealand, acting on advice from Air Canada, wouldn't let him on their plane. He spent two days and $441.00 in Honolulu before Air NZ relented and flew him onward to Auckland.

One presumes the holiday in New Zealand was pleasant and left Mr. Passenger feeling well-rested and jovial, as there appear to have been no incidents on the return to Canada. Air Canada did fly him back from Honolulu, under certain conditions, which he accepted "under duress".

Under duress? Really? Under protest, perhaps. Duress seems a tad strong. Oh well.


The Regulatory Part

Mr. Passenger complained to the Canadian Transportation Agency, asking for his money back. (The $441.00). The Agency found that Air Canada had not followed their own rules, and ordered them to repay Mr. Passenger, and to take their negative comments off his permanent record, lifting any bans they may have put on there.

What Really Happened?

We may never know how it was inside that airplane on the fateful day when Mr. Passenger asked for duty-free two hours outside Honolulu. Air Canada said he mentioned the word "gun" in his demands, that he grabbed flight attendants and did not modify his behaviour and quiet himself until the Air Canada people threated him with restraints.

Mr. Passenger says Air Canada is damaging his good name and that he did not do those bad things.

The Agency said that Air Canada did not provide any evidence to back up their story, just a statement from counsel (who presumably was not on the plane and therefore could not be a first-hand witness). They also found that Air Canada does not have the right to tell other airlines about their customers' alleged bad behaviour.

Actually, they didn't come right out and say Air Canada doesn't have the right. The Agency said that telling other airlines was not in the terms of Air Canada's tariff. Whether Air Canada has freedom of speech, or whether the passenger's privacy comes first was not discussed. The Agency had a sort of disapproving tone in that paragraph, that's all.

The complainant won overall.

It's an open question why the airline didn't produce any flight reports or bring the flight attendant to the hearing to give evidence. Everyone is so busy these days. Would you rather have a flight attendant serving you drinks or sitting in a hearing room?

The most troubling part, for the rest of us fliers, is that if airlines can't tell other airlines about unruly passengers (not Mr. Passenger, but the ones who are really unruly with evidence to prove it) - then the rest of us will have the pleasure of their company for every leg of our long-distance, code-sharing flights.

Jam side down for us.

Worst Job in the World: Zimbabwe In-Person Election Reporter

"Security officials were to meet to decide who would tell Mr. Mugabe that he had lost".

Read by Charlotte Gray on BBC Radio 4's PM news program, March 31, 2008.