New Delhi: Indigo flight delayed for over 5 hours, passengers protest at airport

An IndiGo flight which was supposed to leave for Guwahati from New Delhi with 177 passengers was delayed by about five hours on Wednesday evening due to bad weather conditions. The action triggered protests by a group of passengers at the IGI Airport.

The passengers who were protesting even allegedly came out of the stranded A320 aircraft and tried to block the taxiway, sources said.

Flight operations were hampered on Wednesday evening after a massive dust storm hit the national capital and its neighbouring states, resulting in about 21 diversions from IGI Airport, the officials said.

Passengers of flight No. 6E-694 were agitated over the delay and alleged poor or no communication from the airlines about the reason behind the delay.

IndiGo stated they were not aware of passengers getting down from the aircraft. It also dismissed allegations that passengers were not communicated.

In a statement, the airline regretted the "inconvenience caused to the passengers” and attributed the delay to the weather conditions and the change in crew, who had to wait for the departure slots. 

The flight was due to depart at 6.30 PM but took of at 11.30 PM, five hours behind the schedule.

Sources in the CISF, which is in charge of security at the IGI Airport, said their personnel stopped the passengers, who had de-boarded, in the tarmac area from gathering and moving any further.

The airline said the incoming aircraft which was scheduled for Guwahati arrived late due to the bad weather condition. The airline started the boarding process at 8.15 PM but with the intensified thunderstorms, the aircraft could not depart.

"It is common practice that after boarding, the passengers are kept on board to make use of any departure slot that is coming available," the airline said. 

The passengers were given accommodations and were provided ground transportation at Guwahati after landing, the aircraft stated.