A San Francisco-bound Air India flight from Mumbai was delayed by 18 hours due to a technical problem and a passenger falling sick. The flight was scheduled to take off from the Mumbai International Airport on Friday at 4 PM. However, it was delayed for about 18 hours after the crew noticed a technical issue in the flight. After that, a passenger fell ill, and subsequently, some other passengers also deboarded the plane, which led to further delay. Many passengers from the flight took to X (formerly Twitter) to talk about how they were forced to sit in a plane with no air conditioning for up to 6 hours during this waiting time. Read on to read their experience and what the airline has to say about the incident.
Passengers Share Experiences During The Flight Delay On Social Media
A Mumbai to San Francisco Air India flight saw a significant delay on Friday. The flight, scheduled to take off at 4 PM, was initially delayed due to some technical glitch. It was then scheduled to take off at 7:17 PM on Friday evening. However, there was another delay when a passenger fell ill and some others decided to deplane. It finally took off at 10:30 AM on Saturday.
Many netizens took to X (formerly Twitter) to share their experience during this flight. They talked about how they were forced to sit in the aeroplane for 5-6 hours and there was no proper air conditioning in it. Here are some of these posts. People mentioned how there was no ventilation in the plane and it had senior citizens on board as well.
The flight had no air conditioning and we were stuck inside for good 5 hours. The in-flight service from the crew members was disappointing. 3 people passed out due to suffocation. Everyone eventually had to de-board. The pick up and drop service to the hotel was so tiring. Contd
— Pratik Mundada (@PratikMundada10) May 24, 2024
My family and I had to eventually decide to go back home instead of waiting there for their service since that was more convenient. No proper food or snacks arrangement were done throughout the day. No proper answers to the questions from the authorities. @airindia @RNTata2000
— Pratik Mundada (@PratikMundada10) May 24, 2024
AI 179 #mumbai to #SanFrancisco on 24.5.2024, passengers boarded arnd 15:30, still flight has not taken off, its 19:35. Passengers r left to suffer, no aircon, no proper clarity on what’s causing delay … @JM_Scindia @airindia What a shame. Flight never took off. pic.twitter.com/QmEqTsOhSQ
— Ajay Shah (@ShahAjayR) May 25, 2024
@airindia what is happening in flight no AI179( Mumbai to San Francisco) , the AC is not working, the flight was supposed to start at 4:00pm and now it’s 7:09pm…@JM_Scindia can you please intervene, there are old age people…Why the aircraft was not checked before..@narendramodi
— Dr. NCN🇮🇳 (@nand7272) May 24, 2024
Also Read: Air India Announces Salary Hikes For Pilots And Annual Appraisals For All Employees
Air India On Mumbai-San Francisco Flight Delay
Addressing the delay on the Mumbai-San Francisco Air India flight, the airline released a statement. They said, “AI-179 from Mumbai to San Francisco, scheduled to depart at 1600 hrs today, was delayed due to a technical issue arising just before departure. Giving top priority to safety issues, the aircraft was held back for engineering checks…Meanwhile, a few guests decided to discontinue the journey and the flight got further delayed as their baggage had to be offloaded from the aircraft.”
They further mentioned, “Guests have been offered hotel accommodation, complimentary rescheduling, and full refunds and served refreshments at the airport. Inconvenience caused to guests is sincerely regretted.”
Let us know your two cents on this entire matter in the comments section.
Cover Image Courtesy: Wikimedia & X/@PratikMundada10
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