A peeved passenger aboard a plane that was delayed up to 10 hours in India decided to take his frustrations out on the pilot.
In a video that has since gone viral on social media, a pilot for low-cost Indian airline IndiGo is seen making an announcement about a delay. A man from the back of the plane charged the pilot and slapped him.
The new pilot took over from the previous crew due to flight duty time limitations (FDTL) in India, which ensures required rest for pilots and flight attendants.
On Monday, fellow passenger Sonal Vij explained how the situation unfolded on social media site X — formerly Twitter.
While saying he didn’t condone violence, Vij claimed “the airline took advantage and hid all their mismanagement and mistakes in lieu of what the passenger did.”
He said the plane was scheduled to depart from Delhi at 7:40 a.m. on Sunday and was headed to Goa, but due to fog and bad weather passengers didn’t board until 12:20 p.m., nearly fiver hours later.
However, Vij said that the doors on the plane didn’t close until 2:50 p.m. due to congestion at the airport and the flight crew waiting for another member to board.
“It became evident that ground staff and crew provided misinformation,” he said. “Crew members were observed being unprofessional (and) engaging in lengthy conversations with the ground staff.”
Vij said around 3:20 p.m., the assistant captain addressed the seated passengers that the flight would not be taking off anytime soon. That’s when the frustrated passenger attacked the pilot.
“Violence is unacceptable, but what about IndiGo’s mismanagement, unprofessionalism and 185 passengers stranded without food or water?” Vij asked.
He said food was finally provided after 4 p.m., after passengers were seated for several hours.
Nearly 10 hours after the scheduled departure time, the flight finally left the tarmac at 5:35, Vij said.
“The incident raises questions about the handling of the situation by IndiGo,” he wrote. “Shouldn’t authorities investigate the unprofessional conduct and ensure such mismanagement doesn’t recur?”
On Tuesday, Vij said — based on his account of the flight delay — “a representative from Indigo has reached out to me and informed me that they have initiated an internal inquiry into this incident.”
