IndiGo Faces Backlash as 100 Passengers Stranded at Mumbai Airport for 16 Hours; Airlines Issues Apology

Mumbai (The Uttam Hindu): Around 100 passengers were left stranded for 16 hours at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport due to a technical issue with an IndiGo Airlines flight. The affected flight, 6E17, was scheduled to depart for Istanbul at 6:55 AM but faced multiple delays due to persistent technical problems. Despite assurances from the airline, the situation worsened when the alternate plane, promised to depart at 11 PM, also failed to take off.

IndiGo has issued an apology for the inconvenience caused. In an official statement, the airline said, *"We regret that our flight 6E17 from Mumbai to Istanbul was delayed due to technical issues. Despite our best efforts to resolve the problem and send the aircraft to its destination, we ultimately had to cancel the flight."* Sources revealed the flight was delayed at least three times, with passengers being repeatedly boarded and deboarded. This caused frustration among travelers, particularly a group of students who began protesting at the airport, demanding refunds or alternative arrangements.

Passengers voiced their displeasure on social media. One passenger, Sonam Saigal, wrote on X (formerly Twitter) that her brother had been stranded at the airport for 12 hours, calling IndiGo staff’s behavior *"extremely disappointing."* She highlighted the repeated boarding and deboarding without clear explanations.

Another passenger, Sachin Chintalvad, expressed concerns about missing his connecting flight from Istanbul to Washington, while Biresh Kumar Singh criticized IndiGo’s services as *"very poor."* The incident has sparked widespread criticism of IndiGo’s passenger services and raised questions about the airline's handling of such situations.