The Vancouver International Airport says an unexpected shortage of security screeners is to blame for hours-long line ups at YVR Sunday (Aug. 28).
It took to Twitter shortly after 3 p.m. to notify travellers of the “longer than normal wait times” and asking them to show up at least three hours before their flight to ensure they get on board.
The Canadian Air Transport Security Authority, which contracts out security screeners to YVR, confirmed to Black Press Media it experienced a high level of absenteeism Sunday. It declined to comment on how common of an occurrence the low staffing level is and why so many employees were absent.
Travellers at the airport were vocal about their concerns, taking to social media to post photos of lines and calling on YVR and airlines to ensure they got on their flights.
Hi @WestJet 👋👋… great w/end in YVR but now trapped in a security line so long that 40 mins later we just made into the Domestic terminal. If flight missed, what's the protocol to actually get home to Calgary? Should I start walking?? 😁😉
— Leslie Horton (@global_leslie) August 28, 2022
Hundreds in security line at Vancouver airport.
Airline told us security is on strike today??
Feds need to do their damn job and solve these airport issues. #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/JblwIdqwE7
— Lisa Davis (@LisaDavisYYC) August 28, 2022
YVR said the long security lines are not a common experience at the airport. On Monday, it told travellers to show up three hours in advance for international flights and two hours ahead of domestic ones.
It also pointed travellers toward the Canadian Air Transport Security Authority’s online security screening wait time calculator. As of 9:30 a.m., wait times are estimated between zero and 25 minutes, with the longest line at checkpoint C.
Wait times are calculated by tracking the time taken between a passenger’s boarding pass being scanned at the entrance to the security line and it being scanned before they enter the individual screening process.
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