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Share this Story: Russian, Czech world junior hockey teams kicked off Calgary flight
Russian, Czech world junior hockey teams kicked off Calgary flight Photo by Gavin Young / Postmedia Network
Article content A New Year’s Eve flight out of Calgary headed for Frankfurt, Germany, was held up for several hours due to a disturbance that saw the Russian and Czech world junior hockey teams booted from the plane.
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Article content The Friday evening Air Canada flight took off close to 9 p.m., more than three hours after it was supposed to leave. Social media posts suggest an unruly Russian squad smoking and refusing to wear masks on the plane are to blame. We apologize, but this video has failed to load.
tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or Russian, Czech world junior hockey teams kicked off Calgary flight Back to video Two hours late so far on Calgary to Frankfurt flight. The Russian Juniors team was in back, trying to smoke cigarettes, not wearing masks, not listening to attendants. Cops swarmed the plane. We all had to get off while they and their luggage were removed. — Dr. Kathleen Scherf (@DrScherf) January 1, 2022
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Article content The Calgary Police Service confirmed officers responded alongside airport security due to an incident caused by players and staff members of the Russian team. Police stated the whole flight was deplaned as officers dealt with the incident. The Russian and Czech teams weren’t allowed back on. “The team of the Czech Republic and Russia was removed from the flight for violating the mask regime. Very strict rules,” Russian coach Sergei Zubov said in an interview with Russian newspaper Izvestia. Czech team manager Otakar Černý denied his team was involved in the disturbance, saying it was caused by the Russian squad alone. He said his team was likely roped in with the Russians by the flight crew due to the similarity of their sweatshirts, the only difference being the wordmarks.
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Article content “And practically only for that reason, they threw us into the same bag as the Russians and told us that the entire Czech and Russian expedition could no longer board the plane,” Černý told Czech news outlet iDnes.cz. “Air Canada representatives apologized to us and at their expense arranged a hotel and a flight to Frankfurt at the same time a day later. They also assured us that we would not fly the same flight as the Russian hockey players.” Several travellers took to social media to provide an account of the events as they unfolded. “Two hours late so far on Calgary to Frankfurt flight. The Russian Juniors team was in back, trying to smoke cigarettes, not wearing masks, not listening to attendants,” wrote a Twitter user by the name of Dr. Kathleen Scherf.
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Article content “Cops swarmed the plane. We all had to get off while they and their luggage were removed.” Now, he's listening to Russian rock music on full blast. — Aggie (@aggieloveseggs) January 1, 2022
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Article content Agatha Smykot, a passenger on the plane, spoke to Postmedia after arriving in Europe on Saturday afternoon. She said shortly after boarding the plane, flight attendants raced up to two passengers — who Smykot believed to be coaches or managers of the Russian team — telling one he couldn’t smoke on the plane and advising him of the mask mandate. The other man then began blaring what Smykot described as Russian rock music from his phone. Eventually, after further altercations between the flight crew and the Russian team, an announcement told everybody on the plane to go back to the terminal due to a “security issue.” When the plane boarded again a half-hour later, Smykot said the two men — along with the rest of the team — did not return.
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Article content “I’ve had a quick peek and it looks like Canada hasn’t allowed smoking on airplanes since like the 80s. It shouldn’t have been news to this gentleman,” she said. After a dramatic delay on AC848, we are finally settled in Frankfurt.
Proud parenting moment - we were complimented on our son's behaviour. Kiddo was an absolute champion on the flight - unlike a certain hockey team, he wore his mask without a single complaint. — Aggie (@aggieloveseggs) January 1, 2022
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Article content The Finnish team, on the same flight, was reportedly allowed to reboard after the delay. The International Ice Hockey Federation is investigating the incident and will refer the findings to its ethics board to see whether the Russian team’s actions constituted any violations. “Upon the IIHF Ethics Board decision, the incident will be referred to the IIHF Disciplinary Board for sanctioning,” said the organization in an emailed statement. The Canada Border Services Agency confirmed it was aware of several passengers being deplaned from a Calgary flight on Friday, but said it does not have an ongoing investigation into the matter. On Dec. 29, the IIHF cancelled the remainder of the 2022 World Junior Championship held in Edmonton and Red Deer due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the increasingly prevalent Omicron variant, citing the need to ensure the health and safety of participants, and to protect the integrity of the championships. Postmedia reached out to Air Canada for comment but did not immediately hear back. mrodriguez@postmedia.com Twitter: @michaelrdrguez
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