In viral videos throughout social media, Air India passengers complained that they were being seated inside the plane without air conditioning.
The flight was originally scheduled to travel from Delhi to Batna at around 4 pm
Air India responded to the post on X, saying the delay was due to operational reasons and directed its team to provide real-time assistance.
Delhi’s daytime temperatures were 41.1 degrees Celsius on Sunday, slightly above the seasonal average, according to the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD).
The leaders of passengers Rishi Mishra and Rashtriya Janata Dal explained the dissatisfaction people faced inside the plane, posting a video on his social media.
“This is an air flight from India to Patna. Today is May 18, it’s 4pm. We were in the plane for an hour without air conditioning. You can see how much we are sweating. The kids are affected, many are affected, but no one can watch it,” Mishra said in the video.
In the video clip, the RJD leader can be clearly seen sweating while other passengers use on-flight reading materials as fans.
Dr Bipin Jha, tagging Air India, wrote: “About the flight from AI25221 to Patna! The air condition does not work, hundreds of passengers in this agile heat, my brother lasted for 3 hours!
Air India replied. “Dear Mr. Jha, thank you for bringing it to our attention. The flight has been postponed due to operational reasons. Please rest assured that our team has been notified for real-time assistance. Hope you understand.”
Later, in subsequent Facebook posts, RJD leaders revealed that the ordeal lasted for three hours before passengers were transferred to another plane. “The passengers were tortured for 3 hours without any AC, and now they are being transferred to another plane. There is no guarantee of the lives of the passengers, nor the comfort and money to rob them,” he said.
