- Porter Airlines Flight PD444 canceled after toddler seatbelt refusal during taxiing on Thursday night.
- The delay exceeded runway closure times at Victoria International Airport, preventing an overnight departure.
- Affected passengers traveled on Friday morning following reported confusion over hotel vouchers and communication.
Porter Airlines canceled Flight PD444 from Victoria International Airport to Toronto after a young child stood in their seat and refused to secure a seatbelt during taxiing Thursday night. The crew returned the aircraft to the terminal, but the delay continued beyond the airport’s 12:30 a.m. runway closure.
The incident occurred on Thursday, August 6, 2026. Passengers had already boarded and the aircraft had left the terminal when crew members tried to resolve the safety issue.
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“ A young child was standing in their seat and would not secure their seatbelt. The aircraft could not take off in this unsafe condition, so the crew elected to return to the terminal and have the passengers disembark,” Porter said in a statement.
Robyn van Teunenbroek, the airline’s senior manager of communications, said the child and a parent had to leave the aircraft with their bags. Staff then had to refile flight plans and complete other paperwork before the flight could continue.
The clock ran out.
“ The time it took to get the toddler and their parent off the plane with their bags, refile flight plans, and do other paperwork dragged past 12:30 a.m., which is when YYJ's runway closes for the night,” the airline said.
Porter apologized “for the effect this had on other passengers” and rebooked the affected travelers on a Friday departure. The flight operated on Friday, August 7, although passengers reported missed connections and other disruptions after reaching Toronto.
A runway closure turned a cabin delay into an overnight cancellation
Canadian Aviation Regulations 605.25 require the pilot in command to direct people aboard an aircraft to fasten safety belts during movement on the surface, takeoff and landing. The aircraft could not depart while the child remained unrestrained in the seat.
The aircraft was an Embraer E195-E2, a model typically configured with approximately 132 seats. The airline did not release the flight’s exact passenger manifest, while flight data indicated the route generally carries roughly 100+ passengers.
A passenger account said cabin crew and the parent spent nearly an hour trying to secure the child before the aircraft returned to the gate. Every traveler then had to leave the plane.
Passengers described an overnight wait in Victoria. Some said they did not receive immediate hotel vouchers and complained that gate staff provided little information about the cancellation or their replacement travel.
One passenger, using the Reddit account u/Mama_Swag, wrote:
“We sat on the plane from 9:30 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. We were given no information except that it was suspended due to weather. no staff at the gate had any information.”
The account describes the passenger experience, while the airline attributed the cancellation to the safety issue and the runway closure. The airline’s explanation did not identify weather as the reason for the cancellation.
The child and parent did not return on Friday’s flight
Passenger reports said the toddler and parent were removed from the aircraft and were not permitted to rejoin the other travelers on the rescheduled Friday service. The remaining passengers spent the night in Victoria before continuing their journeys.
The route links Victoria with Toronto Pearson International Airport, using the airport codes YYJ and YYZ. The overnight closure meant the aircraft could not simply depart after the deplaning and paperwork ended.
Some passengers said the disruption affected onward travel plans in Toronto. Others raised concerns about the absence of immediate accommodation assistance while waiting for rebooking.
The incident also prompted public debate over how airlines should handle children who will not follow cabin safety instructions. Passenger commentary contrasted “gentle parenting” with the requirement to keep people restrained during aircraft movement.
Porter has not announced a protocol change
The airline has not announced changes to its child-safety or deplaning procedures following the cancellation. It said safety “remains the top priority.”
PD444 was scheduled to leave Victoria for Toronto on Thursday, August 6, but the aircraft never completed its departure. Passengers eventually traveled on Friday, August 7, after the runway closure had ended.
