Montreal-Trudeau Airport | Travelers between caution and concern

The situation seems to have returned to calm at Montreal-Trudeau airport. With the few delayed or canceled flights and the return of random COVID-19 screening tests, travelers are still cautious, hoping not to encounter the problems observed in recent weeks.

Vincent Marcelin
The Press

Thursday afternoon, in the departures area, travelers take care of the final preparations before their flight. Many are preparing to take off for Europe. This is the case of Leticia and Naomi, who finally leave for France after a trip postponed since 2020.

When they heard about the recent disruptions at Montreal-Trudeau airport, the two young women took all their precautions. “I was worried, especially because of the luggage,” says Leticia, alluding to the numerous luggage losses that have occurred in recent days. “We made sure to have the most things on us, so as not to just depend on our suitcase in the hold”, she specifies. The two young women arrived five hours in advance to be sure of having no unpleasant surprises before takeoff.

“I heard that it was quite a mess, so I hope it will be fine for our suitcases”, abounds Laurence Gillazzon, who makes the same trip after a stay in Quebec. She considers returning to Paris with a little apprehension, after the strikes which disrupted the French air network.

These strikes led to the cancellation of around a third of the flights of the low-cost company Transavia, Friday and Saturday, and a quarter of the flights during the day on Sunday.

In Montreal, most flights are maintained. The Flightaware site, which publishes the status of thousands of flights in real time, reported Thursday about fifteen canceled flights, half as many as at the start of the week. Despite everything, the departures panel displays several delayed or canceled flights, and many travelers rush to the complaints counter. Elyas Ibrahim, who came from Belgium with his three young children, has been waiting for hours for his ticket for a connection to Ottawa. “It’s a puzzle. We cross our fingers to leave soon, ”he explains between two animated conversations with the employees of the airport.

Cyril Chaïb, who is leaving for Germany, deplores the difficulties in communicating with the airlines. “I traveled two months ago, and it wasn’t as complicated,” he explains, adding that it is “impossible to reach Air Canada by phone”. Others prefer to remain positive: “It’s no worse than at home,” says Henitsoa, ​​originally from Madagascar, who accompanies two passengers for a 21-hour trip to the island.

On Friday evening, the Flightaware site indicated that 17 flights had been canceled in the last 24 hours.

Random back testing

Travelers are also preparing for the return of random COVID-19 screening tests for fully vaccinated passengers, scheduled at the four major Canadian airports starting next Tuesday.

Testing will be done off-airport and travelers will receive an email notice within 15 minutes of checking in at customs with information on testing centers near the relevant airport. If the test result is positive, the traveler will be required to self-isolate for 10 days from the date the result is received, per federal requirements.

“We’re coming back in 10 days, so it may happen to us,” says Naomi, adding that she and her friends will keep their masks on for the duration of their vacation. “It wouldn’t be fun to stay two weeks in quarantine,” she concludes.

Same observation for Laurence Mollard, who learned the news the same morning. “We hope not to be drawn when we return. It’s not the test that worries me, it’s more the quarantine while waiting for the result, ”she says in the queue to check in her luggage, where she will leave her dog in the hold.

As for unvaccinated passengers, a 14-day quarantine remains necessary upon arrival in Canada, with screening tests on day 1 and day 8. Many travelers were still presenting themselves at the vaccination clinic on Thursday.