Holiday travel can be risky depending on the weather, but at Maritime airports on Christmas Eve, most flights were on time, and some were even early.
“It feels great,” says one traveler. “Absolutely great, it is always great to be back in the East Coast.”
“It means a lot to me,” adds another. “I am away all the time, working in Fort McMurray, so it is nice to be back for sure.”
At the region’s largest airport, no one is as anxious to welcome loved ones home, as Larry Barton and his family.
“It has been a while since we seen her,” he says.
Barton explains he has not seen his cousin, Kaleigh Wright, in three years.
Wright was born sick, with a birth defect that required two liver transplants.
Her parents left their entire family behind in Nova Scotia and moved to Toronto for medical care.
What was supposed to last a week has turned into years.
Wright has spent all her Christmas mornings in hospital, and now she’s well enough to spend the day with her family.
“When we got then news that we were going to get discharged,” says Kaleigh’s mother. “She was screaming and jumping in the hospital room.”
The best Christmas gift arrived one day early, delivered into the arms of family.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Kelland Sundahl
