Flyers always aspire to travel in business class to experience the luxury and warmest hospitality of the airlines. If this goes the other way around, it can be a nightmare. And, the nightmare came true for the passengers on the San Francisco to New Delhi flight on 16 October 2022.
One wouldn’t expect this from the airlines recently acquired by the Tata group. The seats were broken, floors were filthy and the situation escalated to downgrading the passengers to economy class. So much so that a few passengers even decided to deboard the flight with no refund.
The Havoc On Air India Flight
A cousin flew @airindiain last night SFO Delhi. Paid business class full fare, 11 seats broken in business, so she & 9 others downgraded to economy, 2 chose to off board, no refund. Last row, non reclining, also malfunctioning seats, filthy floor, endless horror. pic.twitter.com/dwRw7eoc0B
— Smita Prakash (@smitaprakash) October 17, 2022
Also Read: Actor Manoj Joshi Lashes At Air India For Flight & Baggage Delay: Calls It ‘Worst Service’
The incident came to light when ANI Editor Smita Prakash shared her cousin’s experience. She took to Twitter to explain the unexpected condition of the aircraft and the havoc created as a result. She tweeted that even after paying the full ticket for business class, her cousin, along with nine others, was downgraded to economy seats.
As a result of the chaos, two passengers even decided to deboard the aircraft. These passengers were not given a refund for the tickets. Adding to the horrendous condition of the aircraft, she reported that 11 seats were broken and the last row of seats was not reclining and malfunctioning. Moreover, the floors were ‘filthy’ and it seemed like an ‘endless horror’.
She later added that the havoc did not end there. Her cousin was again downgraded on her second flight from Delhi to Bengaluru without explanation. The crew said that there aren’t enough business class seats available and that she was free to leave the aircraft but is entitled to a refund.
Vistara Came To The Rescue
Update, Vistara honoured her business class ticket and she had a good experience with the carrier on her Delhi Bangalore sector, early morning today.
— Smita Prakash (@smitaprakash) October 17, 2022
Also read: Air India To Merge With Vistara; Tata Group & Singapore Airlines In Talks
Vistara soon came to the rescue to pacify and do damage control to the situation. Like Air India, Vistara is also owned by the Tata Group but in collaboration with Singapore Airlines. To make up for the inconvenience, the airline honoured Smita’s cousin with a business-class ticket on the same route. She added that her cousin’s experience on the Delhi-Bengaluru Vistara flight was warm and satisfactory.
This brings to light the question of the operations of the Indian Airline that promises “your place in the sky”. Yes, that’s the tagline of Air India. After the revamp, many delighted passengers had good things to say about their flying experience with Air India, but not all can vouch for the same.
Business class or economy class, would you travel in an aircraft like that? It is safe to say, no one would wish to go through a similar experience. Now, with Vistara heading for a merger with Air India, one would sincerely hope for the situation to improve. What are your thoughts on it? Let us know in the comments section below.
Cover image courtesy: Twitter/ Smita Prakash
With inputs from Rachna Srivastava