Passengers are left in the dark as WestJet flights continue to be cancelled days after strike ends

Two days have passed since WestJet mechanics ended their strike, but passengers are still dealing with flight cancellations and frustration.

“We started to wonder, ‘Are these rebookings even real?'” Laura Stewart told CBC News on Tuesday after WestJet rebooked and then canceled several of her flights over the long weekend.

“We were really in the dark.”

WestJet was forced to ground 72 percent of its fleet after mechanics announced a surprise strike on Saturday, causing a series of flight cancellations affecting at least 100,000 passengers. The strike ended on Sunday, but the Calgary-based airline warned on Monday that disruptions will continue for several more days.

WestJet said it had cancelled 1,137 flights across Canada as of Tuesday due to the strike, including 295 on Monday and 75 on Tuesday. It is expected to cancel eight flights on Wednesday.

“WestJet has made a significant effort to resume normal operations,” the company wrote in a press release. “Today, 125 of the 180 aircraft in the WestJet fleet are in service across the airline’s network.”

“As the July long weekend is a peak travel period across Canada, unfortunately there is limited availability both on our network and on alternative airlines, making rebooking options extremely difficult.”

Frustrated traveler: food vouchers are not enough

Stewart, 55, had been travelling from Australia to Hawaii with her husband and was preparing to leave Honolulu airport on Friday when she said she heard about the WestJet strike in the media.

When the couple tried to change planes in Vancouver on Saturday morning, their return flight to Regina was cancelled.

WestJet rebooked them on another flight, which was later also canceled, Stewart said, leaving them to pay for the Vancouver hotel out of their own pocket.

After another cancellation the next morning, they finally flew to Edmonton with the promise of a connecting flight to Regina. But that flight was also cancelled, meaning they had to pay for a hotel stay again, this time in Edmonton.

After another delay, they finally arrived back in Regina on Monday. Stewart says that after the rigors of the trip, they only had two $15 meal vouchers to show for it.

“We were very fortunate that we were in a position where we could manage the additional costs and the delay.”

Which flights are cancelled on Tuesday?

Meanwhile, other WestJet customers remain stranded, including 56-year-old Gary Tater and his girlfriend, who have been stuck in Las Vegas since their return flight to Edmonton was canceled on Sunday.

“We are very concerned about leaving Vegas with July 4th just around the corner. Hotel rates are going to go through the roof,” Tater said in an email to CBC News.

Using WestJet’s flight status tool, CBC News counted at least 63 canceled flights scheduled to depart Canadian airports that day on Tuesday morning. Calgary had the most cancellations, with 18 flights, followed by 10 canceled flights from Toronto and six from Vancouver.

Also in BC there was:

• Three flights from Victoria cancelled.
• Four from Abbotsford.
• One from Comox.
• One from Nanaimo.
• One in Prince George.
• Two from Kelowna.

In the Prairies, in addition to the 18 cancellations from Calgary, there were:

• Five flights from Edmonton cancelled.
• A flight from Fort McMurray, Alta., cancelled.
• A cancelled flight from Grand Prairie, Alta.
• Three flights from Regina were cancelled.
• One from Saskatoon was cancelled.
• Three flights from Winnipeg cancelled.

In Ontario and further east, there were also cancellations in:

• One in Hamilton, Ontario (the only flight is on Tuesday).
• One in London, Ontario.
• Two in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
• One in Quebec City (the only flight on Tuesday).
• Two flights from Halifax cancelled.
• A flight departing Moncton, NB, was cancelled

WATCH | Travel disruptions continue:

Even after the end of the WestJet strike, travel disruptions continue

A strike by WestJet mechanics has ended and employees are back to work, but travelers are still desperately searching for alternatives as the airline works to return operations to normal.

If your flight is delayed or canceled, you will be notified via email if WestJet has your email address on file, according to WestJet’s guest updates page.

You can also check your flight status on the airline’s website by flight number or airport.

What options do you have?

WestJet says that if your flight is delayed or cancelled, “every effort will be made to get you to your final destination, including rebooking guests on alternative airlines where available.”

In a statement posted on its website on Friday, WestJet said that “limited rebooking options are available,” suggesting that some people may find it difficult to make alternative plans to get to their destination.

In its update on Tuesday, WestJet wrote that under its passenger protection rules, “in the event that accommodation on WestJet or another airline is not available within 48 hours of a guest’s scheduled flight departure, guests will be entitled to a refund of their original form of payment.”

On Tuesday morning, the company wrote: “If your booking cannot be managed online, our contact center is available 24 hours a day at 1-888-937-8538.”

But Tater, of Vegas, says trying to reach WestJet has proven nearly impossible.

“We have spent more than 16 hours on hold since Sunday evening and each time the calls were disconnected before we could speak to anyone,” he wrote.

“We are extremely frustrated.”

WATCH | Stuck at Vancouver airport:

Confused travellers remain at Vancouver Airport after WestJet cancellations

Even after a strike by WestJet mechanics was called off Sunday night, CBC News spoke to a number of frustrated travellers at YVR International Airport on Monday afternoon.