Air India is once again under fire, this time for what a passenger described as a “complete lack of sensitivity” and failure to reflect the values long associated with the Tata Group. Soma Maitra, a passenger flying with her 84-year-old mother, shared her harrowing experience on LinkedIn in a post titled “A heartbreaking Air India experience. A plea to the Tata leadership.”
She wrote about how she was stranded at the Delhi Airport, waiting to board a London-bound flight with a connecting journey to Vancouver—a 22+ hour travel plan that wasn’t supposed to be this long or difficult.
Maitra went on to say that it was for the first time, that she had convinced her elderly mother to travel internationally. Knowing her age and health needs, they carefully chose Air India’s direct Delhi-to-Vancouver flight and booked business class to ensure comfort, especially with wheelchair support and fewer layovers.
“We planned it with so much care. She flew in from Kolkata. I came in from Mumbai. We met at the airport in Delhi, ready for our dream journey. But at the check-in counter, a casual comment shattered it all,” Maitra said.
They were informed at the check-in counter that the seats in business class were not working. “We’ll either offload you or shift you to economy,” Maitra was told.
She said that there was no apology or explanation or empathy from the airport staff or the airline staff.
“We had paid for this—planned this—only to be told we were lucky to be “offered” economy class. Eventually, after much protest, we were rerouted via London. The very thing we were trying to avoid,” Maitra wrote.
Understandably so, for Maitra’s mother, this was not just inconvenient but exhausting. Maitra informed that after the information, they realised that instead of a 7 am arrival, their journey would now end at 3:30 pm, after much more physical and emotional strain.
Maitra said what hurt the most was the lack of compassion at Delhi Airport’s Terminal 3. She said that no one took responsibility, and there was no sign of the values people associate with the Tata Group.
She called on Tata and Air India leadership to take note. “We expect better. We deserve better,” she said.
Maitra said that this experience was more than a delay for her.It was about dignity, trust, and the promises airlines make to passengers when they take their money and time. She added that her mother was trying to stay strong through the ordeal, but her own heart felt heavy.
Air India steps in
Later, giving an update on the situation, Maitra said that after reaching out to Partha Ghosh, Global Head of Communications of Air India, on LinkedIn, there was serious personal intervention from his side which made the rest of the trip pretty smooth and looked after.
The Air India team in London met with Maitra and her mother and they, along with their partner company associates, took great care of them. However, she further added that she hopes the Delhi-Vancouver sector is managed more seriously, with fewer overbooked flights—especially given the known issues with older aircraft. She also put a spotlight on the need for better-trained, more experienced staff who are “EQ centric, empowered, and mature.”
Maitra later said that even after all the help, she and her mother had to fly extra 8 hours, then deplane, and then again get on the plane that they paid for. She ended the post saying, “Maa is super tired.”