On Behalf Of The Cabin Crew And Pilots We Would Like To Welcome You To Sydney-Sydney CANADA!!
Updated : Aug 17, 2009
A Dutchman and his grandson boarded what they thought was a flight to Australia, but ended up in the wrong Sydney - in Nova Scotia, Canada.
Joannes Rutten, 71, and his 15-year-old grandson Nick booked the trip through a Dutch travel agency with plans to visit relatives, reports the Illawarra Mercury.
They set out from Amsterdam's Schiphol airport with Air Canada - but instead of arriving to views of the Sydney Harbor Bridge and Opera House, they touched down at Sydney in Cape Breton Island, off Canada's north east coast - more than 10,000 miles from their intended destination.
Air Canada organised hotel rooms in the wrong Sydney for the pair, until they could arrange flights on to the right Sydney.
"I think it was quite an adventure for the 15-year-old. They're not seasoned travelers. Joannes was absolutely exhausted when he arrived," said Mr Rutten's cousin, Yvonne Wallace, from Wollongong, south of Sydney.
Clare MacDougall, who works for Air Canada, was at Nova Scotia's Sydney Airport to meet the aircraft.
"When the door opened, the flight attendant said: "You're not going to believe it but we have two people who thought they were en route to Sydney, Australia," she said.
"They arrived with no Canadian money - they had all Australian money."
