The president of Sunwing Airlines says he’s sorry the company failed to meet the expectations of Canadians over a chaotic Christmas travel week.

Len Corrado is testifying today at the House of Commons transportation committee, which is probing what caused the widespread disruptions in the days before and after Christmas.

He says the airline understands its obligations under the existing air passenger protection regulations, and it intends to compensate those whose flights were cancelled or delayed as required.

Hundreds of passengers ended up stranded in Mexico over the holidays after Sunwing cancelled their flights, citing weather issues.

The airline drew further criticism for announcing it was cancelling all flights out of Saskatchewan until early February.

Corrado now says that move was necessary because the company’s application to bring foreign temporary pilots on board for the winter was denied.

Domestic flights on Air Canada and WestJet were also thrown into chaos over Christmas due to significant snow and ice storms in much of the country.

Representatives from both airlines told M-Ps this morning they did their best to brace for a busy holiday season, but had to grapple with the arrival of a winter storm that hammered airports.