ST JOHN’S, Antigua, Nov 10 2016 – LIAT, on Wednesday, blamed its latest round of flights delays and cancellations on the weather and warned that its disruptions are far from over.
“Passengers can expect to experience some further delays, and some disruption is expected for the coming days as we work to improve the situation.”
In a new release, management said it is working to restore “normalcy” to its network schedule, which has been impacted by “unexpected weather conditions”.
LIAT said high winds in St Vincent last Saturday resulted in an aircraft being grounded at the ET Joshua Airport.
“This resulted in passengers being unable to leave St Vincent and the airline’s crews were also out of place which impacted other flights.”
Passengers with connections from Barbados, Dominica and Antigua & Barbuda were severely affected by the cancellations last weekend.
The company said as recent as yesterday “unfortunately” inclement weather resulted in flooding and closure of ET Joshua Airport. “LIAT regrets that it has had to cancel some flights due to the airport closure.”
Youth swimmers from Antigua & Barbuda and St Lucia were left for hours in Barbados waiting for their St Vincent flight. They complained that LIAT failed to communicate with them after spending an entire day waiting for their connecting flight.
“Given the interconnectivity of our network, as well as the need to ensure a safe operation of our aircraft for crew and passengers, many of our customers throughout the region have been affected,” the company admitted.
LIAT said it is working “feverishly” to ensure that all those displaced are accommodated by rerouting flights, providing meals and accommodations, or by booking passengers on alternative airlines where possible.
“We, at LIAT, deeply regret these unfortunate
circumstances,” it said, adding that it will continue to work “around the clock” to ensure a speedy restoration of the published schedule.”
