Sun Country passengers stranded due to recent system upgrade
(FOX 9) - More passengers are facing issues with Sun Country Airlines leaving them behind and the company is blaming a recent technology upgrade.
Janet Niemi was desperate to fly out of the Newark Airport on Saturday after receiving a call that her mother was dying and there wasn't much time left to say goodbye. She quickly learned her direct flight to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport on Sun Country Airlines had been canceled without any notification or explanation.
“I said, ‘Hey I need to get home my mother is passing and I need to get on your next flight’ and she says, ‘We can’t do anything at the counter—all we can do is check in and check out,’” said Niemi.
One worker at the ticket counter handed her a piece of paper with a number, telling her to call it and be patient. After several attempts and getting a busy line, she gave up and booked a flight on Southwest Airlines.
“The TSA agent told us it was canceled and so we went back down to the Sun Country counter to see what was going on and they were gone,” said Alycia Koziara, another impacted passenger.
Koziara was trying to get back home after a fun girls’ trip to New York City with her mother. They ended up having to spend $150 on an Uber to Philadelphia and hopping on a Delta flight for $400 each because no one at Sun Country was available to re-book their flights.
Sun Country Airlines says they had six flights canceled Saturday because of issues with a recent technology overhaul and "unfortunately, a step that triggers customer communication was missed in the cancellation process."
According to the statement, passengers had the option to rebook a flight or get a refund. Both women, however, say they were never able to get a hold of a representative or re-book a flight through their website.
Sun Country says they issued each passenger affected a $200 voucher to use for future travel and will reimburse hotel costs incurred by passengers who were away from home and not able to get out on a flight the same day. They will also refund all Sun Country flights booked on their itinerary.