Air Canada and Vancouver International Airport (YVR) have launched an inquiry into a security breach that allowed the passengers arriving from China to enter the country without clearing Canada Customs.

An airport spokesperson said that some of the passengers from Air Canada Flight 030 were misdirected towards the domestic terminal instead of customs and immigration, making them skip the necessary security checks.

Once the error was noticed, the passengers were redirected to customs area.

"The CBSA is now working with the airline and the YVRAA to investigate circumstances and to identify any passengers who may have inadvertently evaded routine process."

The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) said in a statement: "The CBSA is now working with the airline and the YVRAA to investigate circumstances and to identify any passengers who may have inadvertently evaded routine process."

CTV News quoteda passenger on the flight Crystal Friesen as saying that when the passengers disembarked from the flight, the door leading to the international arrivals area was closed and that to the domestic area was open.

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This resulted in all the passengers from the flight getting directed towards the domestic terminal baggage claim area.

Richmond Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) corporal Dennis Hwang said that while Richmond RCMP officers assisted the airport staff and CBSA to track down the passengers, some still entered the public area of the airport without checks.

Air Canada has announced that it is working closely with the airport authority and CBSA to investigate the custom breach.