New Delhi: Amid a severe heatwave in Delhi, an Air India flight to San Francisco from Indira Gandhi International Airport was delayed for over 20 hours due to multiple reasons. Flight AI 183, originally scheduled to take off at 3:20 p.m. on Thursday, will now depart at 11 a.m. on Friday.
During the extended delay, passengers were allegedly made to wait without proper air conditioning, causing several flyers to faint. Shweta Punj, a journalist, reported the ordeal on X, stating that passengers were initially boarded without air conditioning and only allowed to deplane after some fainted.
“If there is a privatization story that has failed, it is Air India. DGCA [aviation regulator] AI 183 flight has been delayed for over eight hours, passengers were made to board the plane without air conditioning and then deplaned after some people fainted in the flight. This is inhuman,” Punj posted, tagging Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia.
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
Another passenger, Abhishek Sharma, appealed to the airline for swift action, highlighting that his parents, along with many others, were stranded at the boarding area. “AI 183 is over eight hours 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,” Sharma posted on X.
@airindia please let mine and the numerous other parents stranded at the boarding area go home!
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
— Abhishek Sharma (@39Abhishek) May 30, 2024
Visuals posted by several passengers showed people, including children, sitting on the floor and appearing exhausted, with some having taken off their shoes.
In January, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued guidelines to manage chaotic situations following a surge in passenger numbers due to fog at Delhi airport. The DGCA’s standard operating procedure (SOP) for “facilities to be provided to passengers by airlines due to denied boarding, cancellation of flights, and delays in flights” stated that airlines might cancel flights likely to be delayed or “consequentially delayed” beyond three hours. The DGCA emphasized that all airlines must adhere to the SOP immediately.
