Quebec musicians say WestJet kicked them off flight, damaged instrument

Musician Hélène Lemay along with her two other colleagues Mia Wistaff and Jimmy Lahaie says they were kicked off their WestJet flight and an instrument was damaged. (Courtesy of Hélène Lemay)

Three Quebec musicians are speaking out after a troubling encounter while on a WestJet flight.

On Feb. 16, Hélène Lemay and her two colleagues Mia Wistaff and Jimmy Lahaie were kicked off their flight. Lemay says the airline also damaged her trombone.

“It was just horrible,” she said.

Lemay says she was told by a staff member at the gate that she could bring her trombone on board as long as there was enough space in the overhead bins. She says there was, but a flight attendant on board insisted the instrument had to be removed.

“The flight attendant was basically telling us that we didn’t understand, that there was a procedure, and it was just not possible,” said Wistaff, the group’s singer.

The musicians explained that the trombone, being a delicate instrument, could be damaged if not handled properly. However, they say staff refused to listen to their concerns.

“He was like, ‘You sit down, shut up, and don’t move,’” Wistaff said.

The group claims that a staff member forcefully grabbed the trombone and removed it from the plane.

Shortly after, passengers were told to disembark due to a maintenance issue. When the trio tried to re-board, they were allegedly denied entry. They say a WesJet agent told them the pilot of the flight refused to let them back on the plane.

After retrieving her trombone, Lemay noticed it was damaged.

The musicians say they had to rent a car to finish the rest of their trip from Edmonton to Kelowna by road.

However, the cost of the rental, coupled with the damage to the trombone, has left them out more than $7,000.

They’ve attempted to reach WestJet for resolution but say it’s been nearly impossible to make contact with the airline.

The trio says this shouldn’t have happened in the first place.

“It was way too much. I mean, we didn’t do anything,” said guitarist Lahaie

In a statement to CTV News, WestJet wrote it “sincerely apologize[s] to Ms. Lemay and her fellow travellers for the experience they endured travelling from Edmonton to Kelowna.”

“Our guest support team has been in touch with the travellers in French to extend apologies on behalf of WestJet as this situation could have been resolved with a more positive outcome.”

Work is underway to ensure the group receives reimbursement for all travel expenses and the damaged trombone, it added.