To be honest, nobody wants delayed flights. Let alone being stranded at an airport for more than 13 hours. However, something similar happened to about 60 passengers from India who were stranded at the Kuwait International Airport for more than 30 hours on Sunday, December 1. This flight was supposed to be through the Gulf Air, which was diverted due to a technical snag. Here’s what happened during the flight!
Indian Passengers On Gulf Air flight Stranded At Kuwait Airport
Gulf Air flight to Manchester finally departed at 0434 hours today carrying stranded Indian passengers among others. Embassy team was on the ground till the flight departed. pic.twitter.com/47GVer4Bs4
— India in Kuwait (@indembkwt) December 2, 2024
A Gulf Air flight GF005, which was originating from Mumbai and headed to Manchester was diverted due to a technical snag. As a result, more than 60 Indian passengers were left stranded at the Kuwait International Airport for over 13 hours. In fact, a report by Khaleej Times also mentions that the passengers who were travelling on this flight complained of discomfort as the airline failed to provide food, basic assistance, or accommodation during their extended wait. In fact, the situation only escalated when the passengers took to social media to raise their grievances.
The Indian Embassy Got Involved In the Situation
Embassy @indembkwt had immediately taken up the matter with Gulf Air in Kuwait. A team from Embassy is at the airport to assist the passengers and coordinate with the airline. Passengers have been accommodated in 2 airport lounges. pic.twitter.com/1OySe3KGLc
— India in Kuwait (@indembkwt) December 1, 2024
As a result, this prompted action from the Indian embassy in Kuwait. Taking to the micro-blogging website X, the embassy stated that these passengers who were headed to Manchester were tentatively scheduled to fly at 3:30 AM on December 2. And the recent update revealed by India Today mentions that the flight did leave at 4:30 AM for Manchester. The whole situation happened as the airline made an emergency landing in Kuwait. In the same report by Khaleej Times, it was revealed that passengers were not allowed to leave the airport as they did not have a transit visa. While those who were UK and US passport holders could exit due to their transit visa availability upon arrival.
While the diversion of planes is generally not unheard of, it is, however, quite rare that passengers are stranded at the airport for multiple hours. However, it’s not wrong to say that nobody wants their flight to be delayed at all.
Cover Image Courtesy: X/gulfair (Image is for representative purposes only)
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