Air Canada questions crew members who left a plane without realizing that there was still a sleeping passenger on board.
The carrier reacted to the mishap experienced by a woman who reported waking up alone on a cold night aboard an Air Canada plane in Toronto earlier this month.
I think I'm having a bad dream , wrote Tiffani Adams on June 19, in a Facebook post from her friend Deanna Noel-Dalepar.
Air Canada confirmed that the incident did occur, but declined to comment on its landing procedures or to say whether there was negligence on the part of the passenger.
We are examining this matter. We have no further details to communicate. We are in contact with the client , Air Canada told The Associated Press.
Ms. Adams wrote that when she woke up, she tried to call her friend to try to tell him what had happened, but that the battery on her phone was exhausted. She could not charge it because the power supply to the plane had been cut off. She admitted to having panicked when she found that the kind of walkie-talkie in the cockpit was not working either.
She tried unsuccessfully to send an SOS using a flashlight through one of the portholes. She then opened the cabin door. She managed to get the attention of a ground staff member who pulled her off the plane.
The unfortunate passenger wrote that Air Canada staff asked her if she was well and whether she wanted a limousine to drive her back to a hotel, but declined the offer. She added that company officials had apologized, promising that an investigation would be conducted.
I did not sleep much, because I suffer from recurring nocturnal terrors. I'm afraid to wake up alone and locked up in a dark place , she said.
The Associated Press tried to reach Ms. Adams through Ms. Noel-Dale's Facebook account, but had not received an answer by late morning.
In a response to the Facebook message, the company said it was surprised and very worried . She asked Ms. Adams to send her a private message to provide more details on this robbery.
We will take a look at it , wrote Air Canada.