Mangaluru: The Air India Express enjoys some advantages, especially among the middle class passengers and price factor is one of the few. However, it now looks like the Air India Express has taken its loyal customers for granted and due to this attitude of the air carrier, the loyal customers are planning to say ‘enough is enough and its now time for a change’. Constant negligent attitude and frequent delays and cancellation have spoiled the cake for the passengers several times and this time too the same has been repeated.
Flight delays and cancellations do take place in other airlines too, but in the case of Air India Express, the authorities concerned do not even communicate about the same to the passenger, putting him/her to great hardship. The complaints range from lack of information on flight delay to delayed receipt of baggage and this happens every holiday season. Most passengers complain sarcastically that a confirmation is available only when the plane has taken off to its international destination.
This holiday season (its Eid holidays in the Gulf) the issue of delayed luggage have been reported extensively by the passengers on the gulf sector complaining that they have received their baggage just when they are about to return! This has two implications – One that they cannot enjoy their holiday and second they lose the perishables in the luggage due to the delay.
Passengers complain
The frustrated passengers say that even the Air India Express Mangaluru Airport Support Centre team was unavailable to attend to their concerns. Many a passengers called up Newskarnataka.com’s office and requested that the news portal helped them.
NewsKarnataka.com contacted the Air India Express Mangaluru Station Office, who offered this explanation: “Due to the holiday season, the passenger load is heavy resulting in excess luggage which has to be carried by the next flight as the flight carries additional fuel to cater to exigencies of landing at another airport in the case weather prevents landing at Mangaluru. Chennai Airport has been assigned for such exigencies by the DGCA”.
When the portal questioned them on their communications with the passengers they offered their preoccupation with good service as an excuse, “The priority is to clear the backlog and we are held up with this, we don’t delay baggage beyond one day and we are trying to have it delivered to their residences on priority”.
Aviation experts say there could be mechanical, safety and strategic reason for the delayed luggage. They opine that due to the additional passenger load during the holiday season, the luggage conveyer belts in the Gulf may be overloaded resulting in delays as also the airline may be utilizing the full seating capacity of the aircraft to make up for the slack season. Naturally there will be a carryover of luggage, as for safety reasons, the flight is loaded up to optimum level only.
When this portal tried contacting the AIE UAE Office, they were unavailable due to Eid holidays.
