Last week, WestJet Airlines submitted an application to the Federal Court of Appeal (FCA) requesting it to hear its appeal against a recent ruling issued by the Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA), the regulatory body that oversees airline compensation rules.

On the other hand, the case could have significant implications for Canadians' rights to compensation for recent air travel issues and delays due to the well-documented shortage of airline staff, as WestJet believes that the CTA misinterpreted the federal rules when it ordered the company on July 8 to pay $1,000 to passenger Owen Lareau after his return flight from Regina on the day of departure was canceled due to "crew unavailability."

Accordingly, Lareau complained to the CTA after WestJet refused to give him any compensation for the delay and argued that he is entitled to up to $1,000 under the new Air Passenger Charter and Air Passenger Protection Regulations (APPR). To clarify, the rules require airlines to compensate passengers for last-minute flight delays (within 14 days of departure) or cancellations caused by issues within their control.

Regarding the case, the airline argued that the cancellation was necessary "for safety reasons," which would allow it to evade compensating Lareau for the delay (it took an additional 21 hours to return home due to the last-minute cancellation) under the APPR, but in response, the CTA stated: "WestJet argues that the cancellation was within its control but required for safety purposes, and therefore, no compensation is owed."