Flair defends flight cancellation at centre of B.C. dispute, says bird strikes did occur

A dispute over a cancelled Flair Airlines flight from Calgary to Vancouver last year – which the airline blamed on bird strikes that were never recorded in a federal database – hasn't ended yet. A spokesperson for Flair provided internal documentation to CTV News indicating "multiple bird strikes" did occur before the airline cancelled the Aug. 29 departure. Flair also confirmed it will be challenging the outcome of a case in B.C.'s small claims tribunal awarding $500 in compensation each to two passengers whose travel plans were disrupted. In an emailed statement, a spokesperson said Flair is doing so "not because we are so concerned about the nominal fee, but because we are not an airline that lies to its passengers." Passengers Olivia Donner and James Broadhurst filed for damages through the Civil Resolution Tribunal after their trip to Vancouver was delayed by one day. Under Canada's Air Passenger Protection Regulations, travellers can be entitled to compensation for delayed or cancelled flights – provided the disruption was caused by something within an airline's control. According to the CRT's decision, which was posted online last week, Flair initially blamed the cancellation on adverse weather before citing bird strikes as the cause. Donner and Broadhurt decided to do their own research, looking to the Civil Aviation Daily Occurrence Reporting System – a database that tracks incidents ranging from bird strikes to medical emergences – and found no record of bird strikes on a Flair flight on Aug. 29.<br/>