James William Awad, aka Senior Musician, wanted to give a few VIP members of his 111 Private Club a fun New Year’s weekend. The plan was to fly out of winter wonderland Montreal to the warmth of Cancun to ring in 2022. Let’s just say things are not starting off as planned.

On December 30, Awad and his party boarded a private chartered flight to Mexico. One of the conditions was that every passenger test negative for COVID-19. When this was established, the group was off to Cancun. A few days later, photos of maskless passengers having some drinks and moving about the plane sparked international outrage. Yet here is the twist, Awad released a statement claiming the crew kept the juice flowing and was enjoying themselves as much as everyone else. According to Awad, the airlines was encouraging them to relax and continued to sell them alcoholic beverages. Their sudden deportation and false allegations came as a surprise to Awad and his peers.

A few days later, Awad had to agree to a long list of strict requirements in order for his party to return home to Canada. To save face, Sunwing called for a total 180 for on-flight behavior such as masks at all times, no standing in the aisles, no alcohol, and no in-flight meal. Keep in mind, this is a 5-hour flight, and Awad wanted to guarantee the most comfortable experience possible for his colleagues.

If the airlines felt that rules were being flouted, they could have easily landed the flight, as they were over land the whole time. Instead, the airlines did not cancel the flight or raise any objections. Their sudden reversal on the issue was both surprising and uncalled for. This is a far cry from how Awad is being represented in the media. Sunwing canceled their return flight on false grounds rather than raising objections when Awad and his colleagues were in flight.

And this is not only Sunwing, but all of Air Canada has taken on this stance, stranding the passengers in Cancun despite the fact that Awad and his colleagues were cooperating in every manner possible. It certainly turns the table on James William Awad’s misrepresentation and Sunwing Air’s unfair behavior.