Air travel complaints
Air travel complaints: A step-by-step guide
What happens when you experience a problem during air travel
You have your airline ticket and are ready to travel
You experience a problem related to the terms and conditions of your ticket
You contact the airline in writing about the problem
You wait 30 days for the airline to reply
You are not satisfied with the airline’s reply, or they did not reply within 30 days
You can then ask the CTA to review the case
What happens when you ask the CTA to review a case (file a complaint)
You receive an email with a case number and the link to check the case status
We check your submission and contact you if there is any missing information
We contact the airline for their information about the case and wait for their response.
After we receive the airline’s reply, the case waits in the queue to be reviewed
An agent is assigned to review the information provided by you and the airline
We contact you when we have completed the case review
We continue to receive a high number of new complaints
The wait time between when you submitted your case and when it is reviewed can be more than 18 months. We continue to improve our review process to reduce wait times. We assure you that the wait time will not affect the outcome of your case review.
Already submitted a complaint?
Check the status of your complaint online. (Please do not resubmit the same complaint.)
Before you file a complaint
- You MUST contact the airline in writing first and give them 30 days to reply.
- Check the filing deadlines for delays/cancellations or baggage.
What you will need to fill out the form
- Flight details (for all flights on your journey: airline, flight number, date, airports)
- Description of what happened
- Outcome you are looking for
- Documents in English or French (help for uploading)
- Your written contact with the airline
(See what is accepted as proof of contact "in writing") - The airline's written response (unless they did not respond within 30 days)
- Booking details (ticket / invoice / itinerary / confirmation)
- Supporting documents including all receipts related to the complaint (hotel, taxi, meals, etc.)
- Your written contact with the airline
If you have all your information and documents ready, the form should only take 5 to 10 minutes to complete.
Your complaint cannot be processed if you cannot provide all necessary documents when you submit the form.
We cannot help with these issues
but other organizations may be able to help
Airline service and airport issues
- Airline customer service
- Airplane noise complaints or Aviation safety
- Airport facilities and services (not related to accessibility)
- Customs, immigration and security
Other travel and service issues
Accessibility issues 
Please visit our Accessible Travel complaints page.