Air India cancels Delhi-Paris flight hours after canceling Ahmedabad-London flight
What's the story
Another Air India flight, AI143 from Delhi to Paris, has been canceled after an issue was identified during mandatory pre-flight checks.
"We are providing hotel accommodation and also offering full refunds on cancellations or complimentary rescheduling if opted by the passengers," the airline spokesperson said.
Consequently, flight AI142 from Paris to Delhi on June 17 also stands canceled.
London
Ahmedabad to London canceled
The cancellation comes just hours after Air India canceled its Ahmedabad to London Gatwick flight AI 159 due to the unavailability of the aircraft.
The airline cited airspace restrictions and additional precautionary checks for the longer-than-usual turnaround time, not a technical snag.
"We are providing hotel accommodation and also offering full refunds on cancellations or complimentary rescheduling if opted by the passengers. Consequently, flight AI170 from London Gatwick to Amritsar of 17 June stands canceled," it added.
Flight details
Flight AI 159 was supposed to take off at 1:10pm
The canceled flight AI 159 was supposed to take off from Ahmedabad's Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport at 1:10pm (local time) and land at London's Gatwick Airport at 6:25pm (UK time).
According to the Air India website, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was supposed to operate as AI 159.
The flight was delayed by one hour and 50 minutes before it was canceled.
Passenger impact
Several passengers stranded at the airport
The cancellation of flight AI 159 has left several passengers stranded at the airport.
An irate passenger told news agency ANI, "I was traveling to London... but it has been canceled. The crew did not provide any reason or details about a refund."
However, airport sources said that the stranded passengers will be re-routed to their destination.
The next flight from Ahmedabad to London is scheduled for Wednesday at 11:40am (local time).
Aftermath
Flight number AI 171 has retired
This is the second cancellation of an Ahmedabad-London Air India flight since a recent crash that killed over 250 people.
The flight number, AI 171, has been retired since Monday, and the service is now operating as AI 159.
"The flight from Ahmedabad to Gatwick [London] will be re-numbered to AI 159. The return flight too will be changed to AI160. The change will start to reflect soon," an official told Hindustan Times.