Most flights leaving YVR cancelled due to ‘unprecedented’ snowstorm

Vancouver International Airport has been significantly impacted by Tuesday’s massive snowstorm, with most flights leaving the airport halted until further notice.

YVR says in a statement the snowstorm has had an “unprecedented” impact on flights and operations, leading to mass cancellations.

“Travel continues to be significantly impacted this morning & we anticipate cancellations to continue through the day and the week ahead,” it said.

Prior to cancelling flights, many passengers endured a sleepless night on the tarmac.

YVR says because of the heavy snow and low visibility, a significant number of flights were delayed or cancelled, which caused congestion on the airfield with aircraft holding at gates and on the tarmac.

Due to heavy snow and low visibility in Vancouver, a significant number of flights from YVR have been delayed or cancelled, which is causing congestion on our airfield with aircraft holding at gates.

— YVR (@yvrairport) December 20, 2022

Scott Schade came up from Seattle to jump on a flight to Australia for his daughter’s wedding. But the plane didn’t leave. Hours later, it finally got back to the terminal so everyone could get off it.

In business class, Schade told CityNews that everyone seems to be in good spirits, “I didn’t hear any screaming or crying.”

But Michael Raey is among those who are angry. He’s been waiting for his daughter’s flight to get to the terminal hours after landing at the airport around 10:30 p.m. Monday night.

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“It’s stressful. I’ve been up all night, waiting here to pick her up. I’m not gonna have her wait, there’s like a 40-minute lineup for the taxis and it’s just a big mess,” he told CityNews.

Posting to Twitter, YVR says it has temporarily suspended all arriving flights “while we work with our airline partners and across our airport community to deplane passengers safely and deliver luggage to them in the terminal.”

“We apologize for this inconvenience and thank everyone for their patience. … Please check with your airline for latest flight status. If your flight has been cancelled, please do not come to the airport.”

Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to clarify that most flights departing YVR Tuesday have been cancelled, not all flights.