Security concerns cause hassles for Arctic travellers

MONTREAL — Southbound travellers from Nunavut and Nunavik faced headaches and delays last month after safety fears led to the shutdown of northern airport-security checkpoints and the tightening of security in the South.

Complications began April 20, when checkpoints at the Iqaluit and Kuujjuaq airports were closed out of concerns that they were not up to standard.

To guarantee safety at southern airports, northerners connecting to flights leaving from Ottawa and Montreal were forced to pass through airport security upon arriving at the airports in those cities.

Other passengers simply collected their luggage in front of the terminals and went on their way.

When security screening stopped in Iqaluit and Kuujjuaq, First Air and Canadian North flights to Ottawa, as well as First Air flights to Montreal, had to offload passengers and baggage far away from the main airport terminals.

Buses then picked up the passengers and transported them to the front doors of the main terminals. Passengers with connecting flights took their bags there and passed through security on the way to their departure gates.

“It really looks like the Third World,” said one passenger of the scene outside the remote part of Dorval airport where his flight had taxied to a stop.

These exceptional measures came into effect coincided with the opening of the Summit of the Americas in Quebec City and the arrival of many international leaders there.

In the period leading up to and during the meeting, security measures were tightened at all entry points into Canada.

And while no one is willing to confirm that the security clampdown in the North was due to the summit, an airline official said the decision to stop security screening in Iqaluit and Kuujjuaq was a “very unusual” step.

The move also created some interesting security loopholes, because passengers whose flights ended in Montreal or Ottawa didn’t have to pass through security at any point.

Northsight Security, a Winnipeg-based company, oversees airport security services for Transport Canada in Iqaluit and Kuujjuaq.

Brian Carter, vice-president of Northsight Security, said the decision to shut down the security checks came after a routine check showed screening did not meet the standards of airports in Montreal or Ottawa.

Carter said airports determine the level of security they want to maintain. The security checks at Iqaluit and Kuujjuaq normally meet the requirements of the airports in Montreal and Ottawa, so that passengers from the North can go on to connecting flights at those airports.

“With the rising threats around the world, all security measures are going through a period of re-evaluation,” Carter said.

Fifteen employees in Iqaluit and Kuujjuaq were affected by the shutdown. Those from Kuujjuaq were sent to Iqaluit for a brush-up course in security techniques.

But Carter said he couldn’t comment on this course’s content.

“No one’s allowed to say what they’re looking for,” he said.

Security checks were up and running again by May 2, putting an end to the inconvenience and confusion, as well as to the insecurity of traveling on a plane where no one had passed through security screening.

“We could have been hijacked,” reflected one passenger aboard a flight from Kuujjuaq to Montreal.

“It’s been crazy,” said an employee of Nunavik’s northern medical module who picks up patients at Dorval International Airport. “The other day I had 12 people arriving, and some were left off upstairs, and some down.”

A group of hockey players arriving from Iqaluit found themselves split between two levels with masses of hockey equipment to collect and organize.

Many passengers with connecting flights found themselves scrambling to check in, pass security and make their flights.

The airlines were also stuck with unhappy customers and additional expenses for the rental of buses.