The Guyana Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) has met with officials from American Airlines and registered it concerns about recent flight cancellations and treatment of passengers, Head of the Aviation body, Lt. Col. (Ret’d) Egbert Field said.
In a brief telephone interview yesterday, Field said they have met with airline officials virtually and relayed their concerns. The airline is expected to respond shortly in relation to the constant delays and other matters.
According to Field, while airlines are expected to compensate passengers and it is a requirement to set aside funds for this before starting operations on a route, he said this only applies when the airline pulls out from operating on the route. He clarified that it does not compensate passengers in relation to delays and cancelled flights.
Within the last six months there have been cancellations by the airline on both its Guyana to Miami and Guyana to New York routes.
The Ministry of Tourism, Industry and Commerce last week said, “On average 44% of AA flights from Guyana over the last six months have been delayed. Additionally, an average of two flights monthly have been cancelled. The Government of Guyana has received numerous complaints about the manner in which customers are treated when there are cancellations.”
The statement said that the Government supports AA operating in Guyana but stressed that poor treatment of passengers is unacceptable.
Minister of Tourism, Industry and Commerce Oneidge Walrond while res-ponding to questions from this newspaper urged customers to lodge official complaints with the Competition and Consumer Affairs Commission (CCAC).
“…if the passengers have a complaint they can send an email or reach out to the CCAC in their numbers. Whoever it is that is affected, we encourage them to come forward and make their complaint so we have a basis for an investigation,” the minister said.
However, this newspaper learnt that many of the affected consumers vented their frustration via telephone at the Office of the President. Efforts are now being made by the ministry to contact those persons and have them file complaints with the relevant authorities.
Several instances of passengers from the Corentyne area being forced to return home after turning up at the airport and spending hours awaiting a flight were brought to the attention of Stabroek News. They were not compensated by the airline.
At the end of October Reuters reported that more than 1,739 flights were cancelled globally by the air service provider.
Airlines have been tight on staffing due to the coronavirus pandemic that drastically reduced demand for air travel. As normal life resumes, many are ramping back up.
The airline had offered voluntary leave to some employees to help weather the pandemic. It also furloughed 17,500 employees, though those people are now back to work, a company spokeswoman told Reuters.
