'We're kind of stuck': Magdalen Islanders sign petition for better airline service

In January, it took Céline Cummings four days to get to Montreal instead of what should have been an easy two-hour direct flight.

A resident of Cap-aux-Meules on Quebec's Magdalen Islands, Cummings's flight was delayed for days, ruining the week-long vacation she had booked in Montreal and costing her an extra couple of thousand dollars.

"This is one of many examples of what's been going on for too long now. We don't know when we're going to leave. We don't know when we're going to come back. There are people who are missing medical appointments, surgery … We're kind of stuck," said Cummings.

She is one of the residents of the Magdalen Islands who helped launch a petition on the National Assembly's website last week, calling on the Quebec government to help find a solution and provide better, more reliable airline service to the region.

The petition, which has since received over 1,700 signatures, is asking the government to have a conversation with local airline companies — particularly Pascan Aviation, one of only two airlines to service the region year-round.

Cummings says the airline often cites mechanical issues when flights are delayed or rescheduled. That's what happened to her back in January.

"I was supposed to leave the island at 6:30 a.m. on Monday and I finally reached Montreal on Thursday evening at 10 p.m.," said Cummings.

"I had a full week vacation that was rented already in Montreal and I lost everything. I mean the company is refusing to reimburse the fees that are associated with that because they said it was a mechanical breakdown."

She says that some residents have reached a breaking point, particularly since they are not able to receive compensation for the delay because mechanical breakdowns are considered out of the company's control.

"It seems like every single — or close to every single — flight that is being cancelled, they always come up with the reason that there is a mechanical breakdown," said Cumming, who also said it makes residents question the safety of the flights.

"How could it be safe? It's like two stories there. Like how can you constantly be in mechanical breakdown and tell us on the other end that the flight is safe. I mean I don't buy that," she said.

"I think it's either you take your responsibility and you assume the fees or you ask for help [from] the government or somebody to provide you [with] airplanes that are reliable. That's it."

Transportation to and from the islands is also complicated by the lack of airlines in the region.

In June 2020, Air Canada suspended service to the Magdalen Islands when it cancelled 30 domestic routes and closed 8 stations at regional airports across Canada due to "weak demand" caused by the pandemic.