[Divyesh Joshi]

To,
The Managing Director,
Air India,


Sub: Complain regarding inordinate delay of flight by 6 hours.

1. I had tickets for the journey from Port Blair to Chennai to Ahmedabad as detailed below:

Sr. No. Name of the passenger Age From To Flight No.
1 Divyesh Joshi
Gopi Joshi
Khanjan Joshi 41
40
14 Port Blair Chennai AI 550
2 Divyesh Joshi
Gopi Joshi
Khanjan Joshi 41
40
14 Chennai Ahmedabad SG 503

2. Due to inordinate delay of 6 hours of the Air India flight from Port Blair to Chennai, I missed my Spicejet flight from Chennai to Ahmedabad.

3. On 19.5.2016 around 3:30 a.m. I received a phone call from the call center of Air India informing about the said delay and when I asked about my connecting flight I was told to reach the Air Port at 7 a.m. and something will be sorted out at the air port. On reaching airport when I informed the duty manager Mr. R.K. Rath about my connecting flight for Ahmedabad initially he told that he cannot do anything as I have got another airline flight. But on continuous request and insist he agreed to do something.

4. From 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. he assured, assured and assured doing phone calls, emails etc. etc. He also called the duty manager at the Chennai air port Mr. Raghwan. At last he told us that he has coordinate with Chennai air port staff and it has been arranged that one fellow will be there with our boarding pass ready to board the Spicejet Ahmedabad flight and air india will send our luggage via Air India Ahmedabad flight.

5. During the above period I also tried to coordinate with the duty manager of Spicejet Airlines at Port Blair airport. There was an Air India flight from Chennai to Ahmedabad around 6 p.m. I suggested the duty managers of both the airlines that if 3 passengers of Air India Ahmedabad flight are accommodated in Spicejet flight from Chennai which was to be departed at 4.30 p.m. we 3 passengers may catch the Air India flight for Ahmedabad in place of Spicejet. But neither of them responded positively. Instead they informed me that both the airline has no agreement for exchange of passenger. The duty manager of the Spicejet airline at Port Blair straight away denied about any possibility about exchange of passengers quoting rules and regulations.

6. At last we had no option and boarded for Chennai hoping for getting the Spicejet Ahmedabad flight. As we had to take chance we were also not in a position to get our Spicejet ticket cancelled. On reaching Chennai air port we came to know that we had missed the flight by just 15 – 20 minutes. All these happened due to negligence on part of Air India and its staff. They did not take pain to solve the issued.

7. Resultantly, we lost the money of our Spicejet tickets amounting to Rs. 16,419/- and at last we had to purchase ticket amounting to Rs. 29,046/- of the Jet Airline, the lowest fare and earliest flight available at that very moment.

8. Moreover, when I requested Mr. S.S.Pirakalathan, Senior Manager, Air India, Chennai airport to at least arrange some hotel accommodation till our next flight, he straight away told that he has got no power for the same and advised to take dormitory available at the Chennai airport @ Rs.700/- per person at your own. They repeatedly told that their limited responsibility was to take us from Port Blair to Chennai only.

9. Therefore, now I must be compassionate the above amount since all the things occurred due to inefficiency and negligence of Air India only. Moreover, I must also be granted compensation for physical and mental stress and agony I and my family suffered for almost 24 hours.

10. The most simple and easiest solution of exchange of passengers at Chennai airport from Air India flight to Spicejet flight was not exercised for no reason and it resulted in a huge monetary lose for us and mental stress and agony.

11. I am not able to understand the agreement and treaty between airlines for exchange of passengers i.e. also in extraordinary/ exceptional circumstances. I may be given details of the same alongwith relevant rules/regulations.

12. The worst part of the story was that the staff of both the airlines never took any responsibility of what ever happened and instead they thrown the responsibility to each other very shamefully without thinking of the situation created for the passengers. I have never seen such in humanitarian approach in my life.

The name and designation of the officers are as under:

1. R.K.RATH DUTY MANAGER PORT BLAIR AIR INDIA
2 RAGHWAN DUTY MANAGER CHENNAI AIR INDIA
3 S.S.PIRAKALATHAN SENIOR MANAGER CHENNAI AIR INDIA
4 VIJIT DUTY MANAGER PORT BLAIR SPICEJET


13. I also requested Mr. Domnic or like that (forgotten the exact name) duty manager of Spicejet airlines at Chennai airport for giving telephone number of the spicejet office at Port Blair airport. But he denied straight away and behaved very rudely. When I told him that I will file complain against him he threatened me like anying.

14. The officers at Sr. No. 1 to 3 in the above table though being very senior and having vast experience of service not only unable to resolve the issued properly but also even could not implement the suggestion of exchange of the passengers given by me.

15. One more very poor and shameful thing noted was though all the officers of both the airlines posted at Chennai airport, one of the four metro city airport of India, were not able to communicate in Hindi, though being our national language. It was not only that they were not able to speak in Hindi they were not able to understand or not rather wanted to understand Hindi and insisting the passengers to speak in English.

16. Now it is neither possible nor necessary that each and every passengers travelling by air is fluent in English or know the English language at all. Therefore each and every staff of all the airlines must be instructed to at least know the working Hindi and at least understand and respond positively and respectfully to the Hindi speaking passengers.

17. When I requested Mr. Vijit working as a duty manager of Spicejet Airlines at Port Blair airport to propose Chennai staff to accommodate 3 of Air India passengers in Spicejet he straight away denied me and tried to explain me about rules and regulations as if I am an uneducated person. He also told me never to think about such exchange of passengers since it is never possible and illegal. Therefore, he must be instructed to behave properly with the passengers and not to show his smartness unnecessary.

18. I may be informed about the reasons in detail for this inordinate delay of 6 hours and the remedial measures being taken. The staff must also be instructed to work efficiently and resolve the exceptional circumstances / situation created. The penal action must also be initiated against the staff for the various lacunas stated above, under conduct rules of the airlines and I may also be informed in details about the same.