Jason Huang says he and three older relatives were simply trying to get back to Toronto last August, when a routine check-in at the WestJet counter at Edmonton International Airport escalated into a confrontation.
“The manager suddenly grabbed my phone,” said Huang. “I was shocked.”
The family was wrapping up a trip to Banff, Jasper and Calgary and had already checked in online and printed their boarding passes. But Huang says at the check-in counter, a WestJet agent issued new ones for a later flight — without explanation.
When Huang asked why they were no longer on the original plane, he says no one would provide a clear answer. He continued to question the change, and was told the aircraft they were supposed to fly on had been down-sized and some of the passengers — including his family — had to fly several hours later.
Huang wanted to document this response so he could submit it with a compensation claim, so he pulled out his phone and began making an audio recording.
A WestJet agent can be heard telling Huang he will call the police if he does not stop recording.
When Huang refused, the agent told him, “You’re not flying today.”
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After a heated exchange, Huang says the agent snatched the phone from his hand and tore up the group’s boarding passes.
He remembers thinking, “I can’t believe this is happening in Canada.”
Huang says when his father tried to record a video of what was happening on his own phone, the situation worsened.
In the video, the agent can be heard telling the group they have “no right” to record and to “Get this phone down!”
Passenger Jingan Huang was recording his son’s interactions with WestJet agents when one of the agents reached for his phone, telling him incorrectly that he cannot record.
The agent then tried to grab that phone, which Huang says resulted in his 73-year-old father getting hit in the eye, leaving it red and swollen.
A lawyer with the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) says what he saw on the videos was disturbing, because recording such interactions is perfectly legal in Canada.
“Things are going to escalate,” said Tamir Israel, director of the Privacy Surveillance Technology Program at the CCLA, “unless the airlines systemically address this and make sure that all their [employees] very clearly understand that you cannot restrict recordings in these situations.”
Huang later requested compensation from WestJet under Air Passenger Protection Regulations, which WestJet denied, so he has filed a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency.
WestJet declined Go Public’s request for an on-camera interview.
In a statement, a spokesperson wrote that the incident was “promptly investigated,” that the airline apologizes to the guests and that there would be “internal follow up.” WestJet declined to elaborate when asked what that followup included.
Frustrated with Air Transat
Midhun Haridas and his wife Parvathy Radhakrishnan Nair say they faced a similar situation when they tried to fly back to Toronto from the Dominican Republic’s Punta Cana International Airport in March 2024.
Haridas says an Air Transat boarding manager told them they were standing in the wrong place for check-in, which led to some confusion about where they should stand. The agent became irritated with them and said he wouldn’t allow them to check in.
Confused and frustrated, Haridas took out his phone to record the dispute, but the agent demanded he stop.
“Delete all pictures and all video for check-in,” the Air Transat agent says on the video.
As their departure time approached, Haridas says he and his wife pleaded to be allowed on the plane, but the agent ignored them.
Eventually, they were told they could only fly if they deleted the videos they recorded and signed a document stating they had been disruptive and abusive.
This Air Transat employee told Haridas and his wife they could not board a flight home to Toronto from Punta Cana, unless Haridas deleted video of him from his phone.
“I was like, ‘We are never going to sign something which is false,’” said Haridas. “Never.”
The plane left without them, forcing them to scramble to find an alternative flight later that day with another carrier.
Judge’s scathing ruling
When they got home, Haridas reached out to the group Air Passenger Rights, and learned he should file a small claims lawsuit.
As part of the lawsuit, Haridas submitted his video recordings.
In a scathing ruling, the judge said he was thankful the recordings existed, because they show “how terrible the customer service that [Haridas] received at the hands of the defendant corporation was.”
He called Air Transat’s conduct “egregious” and awarded the couple $7,000 as they were denied the ability to check-in for the flight and were never provided a reason.
Air Transat declined an interview request, but said in a statement it “regrets” the experience “did not reflect the high standards of customer service we uphold.”
The airline also said the individual who wouldn’t let them board “is no longer staffed” on Air Transat’s flights, though it did not clarify whether the employee resigned, was dismissed or reassigned.
Israel, the lawyer, says the video not only helped Haridas and his wife win their case — it was clear evidence that the airline changed its story.
At the airport, an Air Transat employee said the couple could board the plane if they deleted the video. But in court, the airline claimed the travellers were a security risk.
Having a recording is helpful, said Israel, “when there’s a significant disagreement over what might be happening, or where the airline might be advancing one justification over a different one.”
What the law allows
Both Huang’s and Haridas’s incidents fall under Canada’s “one-party consent” rules.
According to the Criminal Code a conversation can be recorded as long as at least one participant — such as the person doing the recording — consents.
It is legal to record and use that evidence in a dispute, says Israel, since the passenger is recording the interaction with a service provider.
“You have your own consent to record that interaction, and that’s all you need,” said Israel, adding such recordings are often essential when it comes to air passengers filing claims.
Israel says he understands why some airline employees might resist being recorded.
“No employee wants to be a meme,” he said, “or plastered on the internet as the person who did something wrong.”
Legal experts confirm to CBC Go Public that passengers have a right to record disputes with airline personnel and that the videos could help when seeking compensation later. This comes after WestJet and Air Transat passengers say they were told they couldn’t board if they didn’t delete photos, video and audio recordings of staff.
That’s why he thinks the airlines need to do a better job of training employees — especially as the holiday season approaches and travel disputes are likely to increase.
Huang also thinks airline staff need better training. But until then, he says, he wants travellers to know their rights.
“If it can happen to us, I think it can happen to anyone.”
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