20-hour delay in Air India flight, people faint without AC
What's the story
An Air India flight from Delhi to San Francisco was delayed by over 20 hours. Passengers were initially made to wait inside the plane, leading to several fainting due to the lack of air conditioning. The flight, originally set to depart on Thursday afternoon, was first postponed for eight hours before being further delayed until 11:00am on Friday. Notably, Delhi is battling an extreme heatwave with temperatures reaching a record high.
Passenger reports
'Inhuman': Passenger narrates ordeal
In a post on X, Journalist Shweta Punj narrated the "inhuman" incident. She tagged Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia in her post, saying, "If there is a privatization story that has failed it is Air India." "Passengers were made to board the plane without air-conditioning, and then deplaned after some people fainted in the flight," she added.
Twitter Post
Read the post here
If there is a privatisation story that has failed it is @airindia @DGCAIndia AI 183 flight has been delayed for over 8 hours , passengers were made to board the plane without air conditioning, and then deplaned after some people fainted in the flight.This is inhuman! @JM_Scindia pic.twitter.com/86KpaOAbgb
— Shweta Punj (@shwwetapunj) May 30, 2024
Airline response
Air India responds, assures assistance
Air India responded to Punj, saying, "Please be rest assured that our team is actively working to address the delay and appreciate your ongoing support and understanding. We are also alerting our team to provide necessary assistance to the passengers." Another passenger, Abhishek Sharma, appealed to the airline for swift action and drew its attention to let his parents and "numerous other parents stranded at the boarding area [to] go home."
Twitter Post
Passenger's plea to Air India
@airindia please let mine and the numerous other parents stranded at the boarding area go home!
— Abhishek Sharma (@39Abhishek) May 30, 2024
AI 183 is over 8 hrs late. People were made to board the plane and sit without ac. Then deplaned and not allowed to enter the terminal because immigration was done#inhuman pic.twitter.com/0XdDBAovBK
DGCA guidelines
DGCA guidelines not adhered to
Visuals posted by passengers showed people, including children, sitting on the floor looking exhausted. Some had even taken off their shoes due to the heat. To recall, in January, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued guidelines to manage chaos from a fog-induced rush at Delhi airport. The SOP for handling denied boarding, flight cancellations, and delays stated airlines may cancel flights delayed beyond three hours. The DGCA had mandated immediate adherence to the SOP by all airlines.