“It was
only at 9.15 a.m. when we complained [that] we were told of the emergency
landing”
All the 122 Air India passengers, who were stranded for close to 12 hours
after their flight made an emergency landing in Pakistan early on Monday
morning, had a happy reunion with their relatives when the relief aircraft
landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport here in the evening.
The New Delhi-bound aircraft had made an emergency landing at the Nawabshah
Airport in Sindh province in Pakistan at 3.37 a.m. after the pilot detected a
problem with the hydraulic system.
What stood out after the relief aircraft landed in Delhi was the barrage of
complaints by passengers about the “late” response from Air India and lack of
basic services such as food and water during the crucial 12-hour-long
unscheduled halt in Pakistan.
Sanjeev Vasisth was quite happy to see his niece Muskaan safe and sound
after what he described as “almost half-a-day of uncertain and anxious wait.”
He said there was complete chaos at Delhi airport, where a large number of
people were waiting to receive their relatives, when the flight did not land
around 5 a.m.
“Nobody informed us about the delay,” said Mr. Vasisth. “It was only at
9.15 a.m. when we complained [that] we were told that the flight had made an
emergency landing in Pakistan.”
News
channels helped
“The Air India officials apparently had no idea or they did not want to
inform us about the emergency landing. I think the news channels did a much
better job by informing us about the safety of our relatives back in Pakistan,”
he added.
Gurjeet Kaur, who was at the airport waiting to receive her brother-in-law,
said: “When we were told that the flight had to make an emergency landing in
Pakistan, we got really worried because of the uncertainty involved in the
situation. It is Pakistan after all and you never know what might happen.”
Ramesh Chandiwala, who was on board the flight, said there was scarcity of
food and water in the flight during the unscheduled halt at the Nawabshah
Airport. “The food stock on the flight was exhausted. We were given only
water,” said Mr. Chandiwala, adding “I do not think Air India understands what
emergency means. The response from the airline was quite late. It took more
than 12 hours for the relief aircraft to reach us.”
Claustrophobia
Talking about the atmosphere in the aircraft when the crew informed the
passengers of the emergency landing, U. Radhakrishnan, who was on the flight,
said initially people were calm but later they started getting agitated due to
the prolonged delay.
“We were told that the relief aircraft will reach as soon as possible, but
people in the plane lost patience because of the inordinate delay which is
unusual for an emergency like this,” said Mr. Radhakrishnan, adding: “What
added to the claustrophobia was when we were told to even shutter down the
windows.”
Another passenger Jaishree Purohit praised the pilot of the aircraft who
handled the situation “brilliantly” and ensured the safety of the passengers.
“Nobody wants to eat in these conditions. What I am happy about is that I
landed safely in Delhi.”
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