Little did a passenger on a SpiceJet flight, who boarded a Mumbai to Bengaluru flight, know what awaited him once the flight took off. After the seat belt sign went off, the flyer left his seat to use the loo, only to get stuck inside the toilet for the remainder of the flight.
When the passenger tried to exit the toilet, he found that the lock was stuck. On figuring out the situation, the crew tried to unlock the door from outside, but failed. The passenger was stuck even during the landing.
He was rescued from his confinement only after the plane landed at Bengaluru and an engineer managed to unlock the door.
SpiceJet has expressed regret and apologised for the inconvenience caused to the passenger. It has also said that the passenger will get a full refund on his airfare.
“On 16 January, a passenger unfortunately got stuck inside the lavatory for about an hour on SpiceJet flight operating from Mumbai to Bengaluru, while the aircraft was airborne due to a malfunction in the door lock. Throughout the journey, our crew provided assistance and guidance to the passenger,” SpiceJet said.
After failing to open the door, the crew passed a note to the passenger asking him not to panic.
The note read,” Sir, we tried our best to open the door. However, we could not open. Do not panic, we are landing in few minutes. So please close the commode lid and sit on it and secure yourself. As soon as the main door is open, the engineer will come. Do not panic.”
Upon arrival at the Kempegowda International Airport in Bengaluru, an engineer opened the lavatory door, and the passenger received immediate medical support, the airline said.
The entrapment of the passenger on the SpiceJet flight comes at a time when airline service providers are making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Winter conditions in north India have delayed hundreds of flights over the past few days, with passengers complaining of poor communication and inadequate assistance from airline carriers.
Earlier, in an unfortunate incident, a passenger attacked a pilot onboard an IndiGo flight while he was explaining the reasons for the delay. Air India was in the news for a 17-hour delay that saw passengers eating their meals on the runway as they waited for their journey to begin.