In a statement on social media on Monday, YVR apologized for Sunday’s “challenging” delays, reiterating that they were caused by an “unexpected lack” of security screening personnel. The shortage caused hours-long lines at the airport and fueled speculation that workers had called in sick en masse in an ongoing battle over wages and working conditions. The airport expects an average of 66,000 people a day from Monday, August 29 to Sunday, September 4, according to a media release. This is more than double the average of 32,458 daily passengers seen in 2021. Before the pandemic, the average was 73,404. Anyone with a domestic flight is asked to arrive two hours before departure, while those traveling abroad are asked to show up three hours early. “YVR continues to work closely with the Canadian Aviation Safety Authority (CATSA) and its many partners to provide a safe and seamless passenger experience. YVR thanks staff throughout the airport community for their continued support with transporting passengers through YVR as safely and efficiently as possible,” the statement said. In June, a national task force was set up to tackle delays at airports, passport offices and immigration services. “The task force discussed the underlying pandemic-related reasons for the significant increases in demand for travel and other government services, which were much greater than expected,” an update from the task force said Monday. “These unprecedented increases in demand are a global phenomenon and have contributed to delays and problems not only for Canadians, but also for citizens of other countries around the world.” Addressing shortages among security screening officers and reducing the average wait time at airports were two areas where the feds provided progress. According to the statement, 1,800 new waiters have been hired since April and the new employees are allowed to work while they are in training. In addition, the statement said the percentage of people waiting more than 15 minutes to be checked has fallen by 6% since the beginning of July.
Yesterday was difficult as we saw long queues and delays, mainly due to the unexpected lack of @catsa_gc security screening staff. We thank our colleagues across our airport community for working tirelessly to get people on their way safely and as quickly as possible. — YVR (@yvrairport) August 29, 2022
