Thousands of air travelers found themselves stuck in terminals across Canada on Saturday as a powerful winter system and knock-on operational issues triggered at least 218 flight cancellations and about 740 delays nationwide.

Major carriers including Air Canada, WestJet, Jazz Aviation and U.S. regional operator Endeavor Air were among those most affected, with disruptions rippling across key hubs in Toronto, Montreal, St. John’s, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Vancouver and on to smaller regional airports.

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Storm System Slams Network From Atlantic Canada to the Prairies

The latest wave of disruption arrived as a strong low-pressure system swept along the East Coast and into Atlantic Canada, dragging in deep tropical moisture and colliding with frigid Arctic air over the interior. Meteorologists reported bands of heavy rain and wet snow, mixed with powerful wind gusts, that severely reduced visibility and made conditions challenging for both pilots and ground crews.

Eastern Nova Scotia and parts of Newfoundland faced some of the most intense conditions, with forecasters warning of 50 to 75 millimeters of rain in less than 24 hours and wind gusts expected to reach well over 100 kilometers per hour along exposed coastlines. Localized flooding, power outages and hazardous driving conditions compounded the aviation problems around St. John’s and other Atlantic gateways, limiting the ability of passengers and staff to even reach airports on time.

Further inland, colder air turned the system into a snow event across sections of New Brunswick, Quebec and central Canada. Persistent snowfall and blowing snow forced repeated runway sweeping and de-icing operations, cutting into already tight schedules at major hubs and smaller feeder airports alike. Airlines said that while safety was never compromised, the pace of operations slowed to a crawl in some locations as crews waited for usable visibility and cleared surfaces.

Air traffic managers noted that the storm’s timing was particularly problematic, arriving on a peak winter travel weekend when seats are heavily booked and spare aircraft and crews are limited. Once the first wave of delays and cancellations hit early morning departures, the network struggled to recover, setting the stage for the daylong backlog that followed.

Major Canadian Carriers Bear the Brunt

Air Canada, the country’s largest airline, absorbed the heaviest share of the fallout as its dense hub-and-spoke network struggled with ground holds and airport congestion. According to airport and airline operations data, the carrier and its affiliates accounted for dozens of the 218 cancellations recorded by midday as well as a substantial portion of the 740-plus delays affecting domestic, transborder and international services.

Jazz Aviation, which operates many of Air Canada’s regional flights under the Air Canada Express banner, also reported significant disruption. Its turboprop and regional jet operations are particularly sensitive to low ceilings, crosswinds and freezing precipitation that can trigger stricter landing and takeoff limits. Jazz crews spent much of the morning waiting for improved conditions and repeated de-icing cycles, pushing short-haul routes far behind schedule.

WestJet and its regional arm WestJet Encore, which maintain sizeable operations in Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver, likewise reported widespread knock-on delays as aircraft arrived late or were held on the ground awaiting weather windows. While WestJet had fewer outright cancellations than Air Canada in the early hours of the disruption, the airline warned that rolling delays could stretch into the evening as it worked to reposition planes and pilots across its network.

Endeavor Air, a U.S. regional carrier that operates flights for Delta Air Lines into Canadian cities, appeared in delay statistics at several airports, highlighting how the weather-related turmoil intersected with cross-border schedules. Flights linking Toronto and Montreal with U.S. hubs such as New York, Detroit and Minneapolis suffered some of the longest holds as air traffic control units on both sides of the border coordinated around the weather.

Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver Hubs Struggle to Keep Traffic Moving

Toronto Pearson International, Canada’s largest and busiest airport, again became a focal point of the disruption. With a high volume of early-morning departures and arrivals that feed the rest of the day’s schedules, even modest delays can quickly snowball into widespread knock-on effects. On Saturday, crews battled icy taxiways, limited runway availability and long de-icing queues that pushed turn times far beyond the norm.

Passengers at Pearson reported being held on board aircraft for extended periods as ground handling teams worked through a backlog of planes awaiting de-icing. Some travelers described sitting at gates or on taxiways for more than an hour before takeoff, while others saw their flights repeatedly pushed back on the departures board before ultimately being cancelled. Terminal screens showed waves of delays affecting routes to the United States, Europe and across Canada.

At Montreal–Trudeau International, similar conditions prevailed. The airport, which serves as a critical connecting point for both Air Canada and Jazz, found itself juggling arrivals that were already late from smaller Quebec and Atlantic communities. Snow, freezing drizzle and gusty winds led to staggered runway operations, while airport authorities urged travelers to arrive early and check the latest flight status information before leaving home.

In Vancouver, the situation was shaped less by snow and more by heavy rain, low clouds and strong crosswinds blowing in from the Pacific. WestJet and Air Canada both reported delays to their transcontinental services, which in turn affected same-plane turnarounds onto Asia-Pacific and U.S. West Coast routes. With long-haul aircraft and crews on tight duty-time limits, even short disruptions risked prompting further cancellations late in the day.

Atlantic Canada and St. John’s Hit Hard by High Winds

Atlantic Canada bore some of the most dramatic impacts, particularly around St. John’s International Airport in Newfoundland and Labrador. High winds, heavy rain and pockets of wet snow pushed crosswind and tailwind components toward or beyond operational limits for many aircraft types, forcing airlines to cancel or significantly delay flights into and out of the region.

St. John’s, a key gateway for offshore energy, fishing communities and transatlantic operations, saw full departure boards wiped clean in the morning as airlines exercised caution in the face of rapidly changing conditions. Airport officials reported that power outages in parts of the city and on the Avalon Peninsula hampered ground transportation to the terminal and slowed some ground operations even when the runway itself was technically usable.

Other Atlantic airports, including Halifax Stanfield and regional fields in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island, also logged a surge in delays as winds rose and precipitation intensified. Aircraft that did manage to land occasionally held in holding patterns for extended periods while runways were swept or braking action reports were updated. For passengers, this translated into anxious waits in crowded gate areas and long lines at customer service counters.

Airlines serving Atlantic Canada said they had preemptively trimmed some schedules based on forecasts, which helped reduce last-minute cancellations but still left many flights subject to significant day-of disruptions. They urged travelers with flexible plans to consider rebooking for later days once the storm clears and operations begin to normalize.

Secondary Cities Feel Impact as Crews and Aircraft Fall Out of Position

While Canada’s major hubs drew most of the attention, secondary cities and regional airports also suffered as the day wore on. Ottawa and Winnipeg, both important domestic connectors and government or business travel centers, saw growing lists of delayed flights as inbound aircraft from eastern and western hubs arrived late or not at all.

In Ottawa, Air Canada and WestJet posted delays on short-haul service to Toronto, Montreal and Halifax, which in turn disrupted connections onto national and international routes. Federal government employees and business travelers returning home from the workweek found themselves queued at rebooking desks and scrambling to adjust hotel and meeting arrangements.

Winnipeg, already bracing for bitter winter temperatures and blowing snow on the Prairies, encountered its own operational strains. Crews timed out after long duty days spent waiting out weather at other airports, forcing airlines to cancel or consolidate some flights. Regional routes to northern Manitoba and neighboring provinces were particularly vulnerable as carriers prioritized aircraft for mainline trunk routes.

Smaller airports in Ontario, Quebec and the Atlantic provinces also reported knock-on effects from aircraft and crew position imbalances. When a single regional jet or turboprop fails to arrive on time, it can disrupt an entire day’s worth of flights for communities that rely on one or two daily frequencies to larger hubs, leaving passengers with limited alternatives.

Passenger Frustration Mounts as Lines Grow and Options Shrink

Inside terminals, the human impact of the disruption was immediately visible. Long lines formed at airline service counters as passengers sought rebookings, meal vouchers or overnight accommodation after missed connections. Families traveling with children queued alongside business travelers guarding laptops and power outlets, while backpackers and international visitors tried to navigate unfamiliar rules and policies.

Some travelers were able to rebook onto later flights the same day or the following morning, particularly on busy routes between Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Calgary where airlines offer multiple daily frequencies. Others were less fortunate, learning that their next available seats might be several days away due to heavy booking loads over the winter period and the number of flights already canceled.

Social media feeds quickly filled with photos and videos of crowded gate lounges, departure boards full of yellow and red status markers, and weary travelers sleeping on terminal floors or in chairs. While many passengers acknowledged that safety must come first in adverse weather, frustration grew over sporadic communication and long waits for definitive rebooking information from some carriers.

Airport authorities and airlines responded by bringing in extra staff where possible, setting up additional customer care stations and urging passengers to use mobile apps and websites to manage bookings rather than relying solely on in-person assistance. Public address systems broadcast frequent updates reminding travelers not to proceed to security until their flight was confirmed as operating.

What Stranded Travelers Should Know About Their Rights and Options

Travel experts and consumer advocates emphasized that passengers caught up in the disruption should familiarize themselves with Canada’s Air Passenger Protection Regulations. The rules establish minimum standards of treatment and, in some circumstances, financial compensation for travelers facing delays, cancellations or denied boarding, though weather-related events often fall into categories that limit cash payouts.

Under the regulations, airlines must generally provide information about the cause of a disruption and offer standard assistance such as food, drink and accommodation when travelers are stuck overnight, subject to the specifics of each case and whether the event is within the carrier’s control. In severe weather, carriers are still expected to rebook passengers as soon as feasible, either on their own flights or, in some cases, on partner airlines.

Advisers recommend that stranded travelers keep all receipts for meals, hotels and ground transportation, document communications with airlines and consider travel insurance coverage, which can help offset unexpected expenses when plans collapse. For cross-border and international travelers, visa validity and entry rules should also be checked if unplanned stopovers or rerouting lead to changes in arrival points or travel dates.

With Canada now deep into the heart of winter, mobility specialists are urging both leisure and business travelers to build wider buffers into itineraries, particularly when connecting through congestion-prone hubs or flying into weather-sensitive regions like Atlantic Canada and the Prairies. The latest wave of cancellations and delays, piling on top of earlier disruptions this month, underscores how quickly a single storm can bring a vast and interconnected air network to a standstill.