Dubai: Uncertainty continues about the Air India flight 994 from Dubai to Bengaluru via Goa that was to leave on Tuesday night, leaving the passengers in a disarray. The flight that was to leave at 10.50 pm on Tuesday was later supposed to leave at 7pm on Wednesday night but at 8pm the time of departure was still not clear.
Earlier an Air India spokesperson who had told Gulf News that the flight was delayed due to a technical snag: ““The aircraft had a major technical issue and was not found to be airworthy. Therefore, we had to deplane all passengers and provide hotel accommodation. The snag has been addressed and the flight will leave by 7pm on August 15.”
The spokesperson had added that it would be ready to take off at 7 pm on Wednesday. However, when the flight had still not taken off until 8pm no one in Air India was available for any comment or clarification.
The grounding of the flight has thrown the Eid holiday plans of all passengers into complete disarray and greatly inconvenienced all who were put up in an airport hotel for more than 20 hours, but have now been checked out. They are standing at the airport counter with no information about when they are likely to fly.
Describing the utter chaos, Mervyn F, one passenger told Gulf News about their nightmare which is yet to end. “The Air India staff refused to disclose any details about what had happened and kept us waiting in the aircraft for two hours after which we were deplaned, herded like cattle and made to walk to the hotel. They refused to tell us that we were going to be checked into a hotel. Our luggage is still with them, we have cleared immigration and continue to be stranded with no further update.”
Watch: People waiting for the delayed Air India flight at Dubai airport.
Angry exchanges were witnessed as passengers exchanged furious words with the ground staff at the airport. Little toddlers were cranky with travel weariness and damp diapers.
Other passengers who had earlier spoken in the day to Gulf News had expressed distress at being stuck in their hotel room.
Sangeeta Rupesh Verenkar, 34, who was flying to Goa with Rashi, her three-year old daughter, told Gulf News: “We sat for two hours in the aircraft. Although the air conditioning was on, for some time they switched off electricity completely. It was stressful as the flight was full and we had no idea when we would take off.”
Verenkar along with other passengers were eventually ushered out and given hotel accommodation.
“My husband, who had stayed back in Dubai, can only contact me over the phone. We have no idea when we will be airborne. The airline has not given any information, only when we checked at the reception we were told first there would be a flight at 5.30pm on Wednesday and later that was shifted to 7pm. So there is still a lot of uncertainty.”
Sophia Dastagir, 45, a cook with a UAE family, was flying to Bengaluru to get a glimpse of her first grandson. “My son and daughter-in-law live in Mumbai. They are waiting for me at the Bengaluru airport as I have to go to my village in Bellary district of Karnataka. My daughter-in-law is on six month’s maternity leave which is to get over at the end of the week. They flew to Bengaluru so that I could meet my grandson, spend this week with him before going to my village. My grandson is already five months old and this delay is eating into the precious time I would have had with him. I have no idea when I will reach Bengaluru now and this is stressing me out.”
