Flight from British Columbia to Toronto cancelled after child refuses to be seated

TORONTO - A flight from British Columbia to Toronto was cancelled last week after a child would not sit down and buckle a seat belt before take-off, the airline said.

Porter Airlines flight PD444 had left the terminal at Victoria International Airport in British Columbia and was headed for the runway when crew members saw a young child who was “standing in their seat and would not secure their seat belt”, the airline said in a statement.

“Attempts by the accompanying parent and crew to address this were unsuccessful,” according to the company, which did not provide the age of the child.

“The aircraft could not take off in this unsafe condition, so the crew elected to return to the terminal and have the passengers disembark,” the airline added.

The time required “to bridge the aircraft, deplane the passengers in question, retrieve their baggage, refile flight plans and other paperwork meant that it was too late to depart” because the airport’s runway closes at 12.30am, the statement said.

A spokesperson for the airport confirmed that the flight was cancelled because of the airport’s “scheduled airfield closure”.

It was not clear how many passengers were affected. The plane has 132 seats, according to an airline spokesperson.

“We apologise for the effect this had on other passengers, who were able to depart on a flight the following day,” the company added.

The new flight departed from Victoria International Airport at 10.49pm local time on Aug 7 and arrived in Toronto at 6.16am local time on Aug 8, according to FlightAware.com, which tracks flights.