- Friday, February 28, 2025
Satwinder Singh, son of a woman who was in the flight, told Insider that the passengers had to wait in the plane for hours before disembarking.
By: Shubham Ghosh
PASSENGERS OF an Air India flight which landed in Magadan in Russia’s Siberia region after developing a technical snag were reportedly abandoned by the crew and they had to sleep on the floor and were given only bread and rice to eat, one of the flyer’s relatives told Insider.
The Boeing 777 was flying from New Delhi to San Francisco.
Air India said in a statement that 216 passengers and 16 crew members were on board the plane which was forced to make an emergency landing.
Satwinder Singh, son of a woman who was in the flight, told Insider that the passengers had to wait in the plane for hours before disembarking and they were then eventually taken to a place that looked like a school building. According to him, the passengers were only given a small mattress and blanket for sleep.
“Since they have been in that building, no crew members have been with them, no one has been giving them any information. There are no adequate provisions for food and drink,” Singh was quoted as saying by Insider.
He also said that he tried to contact the airline many times to help his mother, who allegedly had no information on the ground.
A Twitter video seemed to back some of Singh’s claims. In it, people were seen sleeping on rows of mattresses on what looked like a basketball court.
The passengers were picked by another Air India plane which landed in San Francisco early on Thursday (8), the carrier wrote on Twitter.
Air India later apologised to the passengers of the flight and agreed to refund their tickets and provide them with travel vouchers.
“Please allow me to sincerely apologise, on behalf of Air India, for the extended delay in bringing you to San Francisco,” Rajesh Dogra, Air India’s chief customer experience and ground handling officer, said in a statement.
“Your safety was the highest priority throughout. While the facilities in Magadan, a small city, may not have met the standard we would normally aim to provide, we are grateful for your tolerance and understanding that our local agents and crew did their best under the circumstances.
“As such, we will fully refund the fare of your journey and, in addition, provide you a voucher for future travel in Air India. Although we cannot change the past, I trust this gesture conveys our sincere regrets for the disruption and inconvenience,” the letter said.
