The case list of misbehaved passengers getting away with what they please is getting over the top now. A few days ago, I wrote about a misbehaved passenger being given back by IndiGo on board an Istanbul – Delhi flight. Since then, there have been more incidents that’ve come to light.
Air India passenger pees on a fellow passenger
The Times of India’s Manju V reports of an incident in November 2022 on Air India flight AI102, which the airline tried to hush up. She reports that an inebriated passenger exposed himself and urinated on a female passenger. The fellow passenger, who was in her 70s, was seated in business class on an Air India flight from New York to Delhi.
Per the report, the passenger was flying Air India from New York JFK to Delhi on November 26, 2022, and had to write to the Tata Group chairman, N Chandrasekaran, when the airline took no action on her report.
As per the female passenger narrative, there was more than one lapse from Air India’s end.
- The first and most prominent was the lack of dignity and professionalism afforded to her. As per the passenger, the cabin crew came around, confirmed that there was urine, and sprayed disinfectant on her bag and shoes. Further, the passenger was asked to travel in the crew seat, and Air India staff only covered the seat with sheets, subsequently asking her to return to her seat once it was done.
- The passenger and other passengers told her that there was space in First Class; however, instead of a new seat and a lot of apology from the airline, she was made to travel in the same seat. That, for me, is insensitive and a lack of training.
- Further, the airline continued the flight back to India instead of restraining this passenger and diverting the flight to offload him. Not just that, per the passenger narrative, this co-passenger just walked off scot-free after the incident.
- The passenger concerned had to find her way out of the airport in those Air India pyjamas she was given way around as a replacement for her clothes.
Air India did not act till the passenger wrote to Group Chairman.
Not just did Air India not move their finger on their incident, but they did not file any police report even on landing. As far as is publicly known, there was no move to put this passenger on the No-fly list. In a new statement issued by the airline now, it says,
Air India has taken a very serious view of the incident, where a passenger behaved in an unacceptable and undignified manner on the New York-Delhi flight that caused extreme distress to a fellow passenger. A police complaint has already been lodged and Air India is committed to assist the law enforcement agencies as well as regulatory authorities.
As a first step, Air India has banned the passenger for 30 days, the maximum it is permitted to unilaterally do so, and reported the matter to the DGCA for further action.
We have also constituted an internal committee to probe lapses on part of Air India’s crew and address the deficiencies that delayed quick redressal of the situation. We are also in regular contact with the aggrieved passenger and her family during the investigation and reporting process.
But, it seems the DGCA has received no such report.
Twist in the tale: DGCA has not received any such report from Air India.
Egg (or worse) on Air India's face!!
Meanwhile, everyone is tightlipped on the identity of the man who urinated in the flight. Air India's cover-up is laughable!! https://t.co/vWDp72H5o0— Jagriti Chandra (@jagritichandra) January 4, 2023
Flying a metal tube leads to all sorts of psychological situations for travellers, who sometimes seem to behave as if they own the plane. But this one is a bit over the top. Not only did the airline not discipline the inebriated passenger, who could have been written up on so many counts, including the Indian Penal Code’s Section 509 for threatening a woman’s modesty, but they tried to cover the incident up by just staying quiet on it and not extending proper assistance at the moment to the affected passenger.
Per some sources at Air India, the airline did not look at it as an assault but as a customer service issue.
Update: Another such case came to light after this one was reported.
Bottomline
An Air India passenger on board AI 102, flying from New York JFK to Delhi, peed on a senior citizen flying with the airline in Business Class. The airline, as a response, just cleaned up her seat, offered her pyjamas to change into, and made her fly in the same seat back to India. There was no further movement from the airline till the passenger wrote a letter to Tata Group chairman N Chandrasekaran. The person who committed this act on the aircraft walked free after landing, although the airline claims he has now been put on a no-fly list for 30 days.
What do you make of this incident? Sure the Maharajah would be disappointed in himself.
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India and Indians living there are still in the stone age. These Rockets will never evolve and unfortunately these are the risks involved when dealing with Air India.
This is new. Wes? I was fight attendant in the 80s, and it happened all the time. No you can’t get up to go to the bathroom, as we are taking off. Boom dude whips it out and peed everywhere.
First india should start having hire and fire rules for all sectors. Including government. Every crew member in ariindia will automatically change. Now they donot care as they have a fixed income and that will keep following till they retire.
Write articles and make noise, nothing will change till harsh designs are not taken.
This incident doesn’t surprise me at all. I recently had a very bad experience at Vijayawada Airport with the Air India staff. Air India staff need to learn better customer service. This urinating incident on Air India # 102 doesn’t surprise me at all. What really surprise me is how can this man go scotch free without any punishment. Keeping him on 30 day no fly list is like slap on the poor victim’s face who suffered the the disrespect.
I really thought TATA’S as a responsible company will make a difference in managing AIR INDIA but I am very disappointed. I use to fly on this flight at least twice year. I will never ever fly AIR INDIA again until they improve their customer service.
Indian government should seriously look into this incident and take necessary steps to protect innocent passengers.
There is something called “Kambal Parade” that guy shud have been given that … shame on co-passengers who let him scot free ….. and the Captain … what was his reponse that under his command something so low happens ….
India still in Stone Age , disgusting.never ever with Air India
+1
I would like to know what was the woman’s nationality and the man’s? I have personally seen the difference in how the crew treats Indians on the plane vs white non-Indians. Having her sit on the same seat is just unacceptable. The whole experience must have been so traumatic for her. Nothing AI can do now is going to make up for what they could have done at the time. Why couldn’t they have limited the alcohol to the passenger when they saw he was so drunk.
For the same reason I do not travel in air india they do treat different Indian passengers than white people from personal experience I have not travelled in air india flight for last rwenty years and will not travel in air india in future.
Indians seem to bow down to whites….still living in colonial times although we know the damage that did to indians. Although this article does not seem to indicate who the passengers were. The man should have been downloaded to economy class if not off loaded! His seat should have been offered to the lady
I don’t think this has anything to do with race/ethnicity. I’m just flabbergasted with the amount of times people these days turn anything around into a race fight.
Flight attendants have the responsibility to treat every passenger with respect. Although this situation wasn’t handled appropriately, considering the culprit walked free; the airline should have taken a more disciplined action towards this individual.
I do however, feel like there is something fishy going on here to be honest. Whenever authorities try to cover up the identity of a person, it usually means it is someone who is influential, some minister or big shot, who tries to throw their weight around and threaten to cause anything to shut down or stop operating.
There are so many specific key points referring to this in the article. I don’t care who the person may be, regardless of their stature or position in life; they should be named and shamed for this whole act.
Nevertheless, I have never flown Air India, nor would I ever be flying on this airline in future. My sympathy goes out to the passenger for being put through this appalling incident.
So shocking this man should have been arrested and charged for the misbehaviour typical mental person what if his mum or sister were sitting there and also free consumption of alcohols in plane he would have taken the advantage very stupid behaviour
You know what? I sure wish all those drunk, obnoxious people back in the 80, and 90s when I was flying got arrested. I can’t tell you what I went thru and nothing ever happened, but these days, good that it’s being accountable. The stories I could tell you all!
Bottomline:
AVOID ” AIR INDIA ” ( AI ), airline company.
Unless, ….. you want to take a chance to be treated like a trush while under AIR INDIA care.
P.S.
Do not forget to thank the company, after the flight, for any unexpected free surprises.
Perfectly said! I will never choose air India flights in my life.
Maybe it’s the same guy peed in business class on our flight from Abu Dhabi with Etihad but he got arrested in Manchester
Had better expectations from AI after the TATA’s acquisition. But the inertia of bad service continues. Had a terrible experience about 17 years ago and vowed back then not to travel on this airline. This incident is very shocking and callousness of the staff onboard the flight followed by inaction by the airline’s management is even worse.
To Chairman of TATA GROUP, I would as that the Airline (Air India) which was once the jewel of the sky and trained other international airline cabin crews in service and etiquette take a good serious look at themselves and consider seriously where they are and would like to be. Make the Maharaja Great again in the skies.
It’s India, what do you expect…..
Agree with you % !!!!
AI keeps giving me reasons to stay away.
god knows what’s happening everyday some or the other person is fighting on planes , today I saw people fighting on road like literally hitting each other over some small accident.
Road accidents within India leading to people hitting the driver of a vehicle or to other fights is about as old as driving in India.
If the urination on the female passenger was an accident due to a male passenger’s poor bladder control while trying to head to the lavatory by first crossing over the stretched out sleeping female passenger, then the idea about it being a kind of criminal assault or “attacking the modesty of a woman” won’t easily hold up in court in India.
@GUWonder, and you think him unzipping his pants was an accident, then kudos to you.
Exactly !
GU Wonder are you okay? You read this story and this is your response? Do you work for AI? Fwiw, if somebody ever “accidentally” pees on me, you can bet that i will accidentally make them wish they had not.