No Seatbelt, No Takeoff: Child’s Tantrum Leads to Flight Cancellation

A Porter Airlines flight in Canada was cancelled after a child refused to wear a seatbelt while the aircraft was preparing to take off from Victoria International Airport for Toronto. According to officials, the cabin crew noticed that the child was standing on the seat without wearing a seatbelt as the aircraft waited on the runway. The child’s mother and crew members reportedly spent several minutes trying to secure the child, but the child continued crying and resisted their efforts. As taking off without the child being properly secured was considered unsafe, the crew decided to return to the terminal and remove the child and the parents from the flight.

The aircraft returned to the terminal, and the family was deplaned. By the time the airline completed the required procedures and re-filed the flight plan, it was past 12:30 a.m. As the runway had closed by then, the airline was forced to cancel the service. Passengers had to remain at the airport overnight and were flown to their destinations on the same aircraft the following day. The incident occurred on Thursday night and came to light later. Porter Airlines apologised to passengers for the inconvenience caused by the cancellation.