Passengers On Wow Air Say Flight To Europe Canceled & They're Stuck In South Florida
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – They were hoping for dream vacations – instead several people are stranded in Miami.
Lauren Petz and her college friends worked hard to graduate and save money to spend six weeks touring Europe.
Five hours before their flight on Tuesday at Miami International Airport, they learned that WOW Air canceled their flight.
"It's really disappointing," Petz said. "There's no responsibility. There's no remorse. There's no game plan that gets set up for us to be taken of on this trip."
Petz and other passengers say WOW Air did not book them on other flights on other airlines to get them to their destinations.
She added that WOW Air only offered to put them up in Miami and pay for food for two nights while they might be stuck here for possibly four days or longer while they await another WOW Air flight to Europe.
Petz says the delay is costing them valuable time and money on their European vacation.
"We've already had to cancel hotels," Petz explained. "We've tried to cancel flights. We're probably $1,000 at a minimum."
Brian Halligan hasn't been back to Ireland for a dozen years. He's excited to take his wife there for the first time but says the WOW Air cancellation might cost him five of his nine days overseas.
"This is our vacation and it's a whole waste where I could be spending time in Ireland," Halligan said. "It just upset the whole vacation you know."
Petz showed us her Facebook exchanges with WOW Air. The company, which just began service at MIA in April, apologized and instructed passengers on filing claims. But Petz says she remains disappointed in how the airline handled the entire situation.
"They should be responsible for their guests and give us answers accommodate and reimburse us for for our expenses and the cost of their error, not ours," Petz said.
Late Wednesday, some of the passengers told CBS4 News they think they might be getting on a WOW Air flight on Thursday. But with all the hassles, they are skeptical about whether that will actually happen.
CBS4 News reached out to WOW Air several times on Wednesday to get some answers from a company spokesperson. However, no one returned our calls or emails.
Two days after this story aired on CBS4 News and was published on CBSMIAMI.COM, WOW Air did reply to CBS4's Carey Codd request for comment. In an email sent to Codd, the airline disputed the claims that they were not taking responsibility for its passengers. The statement read, "Immediately upon cancellation of Flight Number WW132, every passenger was given information on what their options were and offered hotel accommodations and meals via text message and email prior to arriving at the airport. All passengers were rerouted on the next available flights. The customer experience is very important to WOW air."