Indigo Pilot Threatens Passenger for Asking for Wheelchair

IndiGo, which is the largest LCC of India (both in terms of fleet size & passengers flown), is now in the news after a pilot threatening a passenger. This is the second such reported incident during which the crew of Indigo has misbehaved with a passenger.

This incident came to light when the passenger took to twitter to explain what happened on that flight. This alleged incident took place on IndiGo's 6E 806 from Chennai to Bangalore.

Supriya Unni Nair wrote in series of tweet on January 13 saying , "IndiGo6E Your captain on 6E 806 from Chennai to Bangalore on January 13 Jayakrishna harassed, threatened and prevented me and my 75-year old diabetic mom from disembarking the flight and threatened to arrest us because we asked for wheelchair assistance."

She continued: "I always ask for a wheelchair beforehand for my mom & remind staff when we land. Staff on all airlines have always been helpful. Our flight was late & when we landed at 9:15 I tried calling the assistance bell & when the crew didn't respond I walked up for help."

Supriya’s next tweet said, "She claimed we don't have access to a wheelchair when it was clearly printed on the ticket. When I pointed this out to her, the captain came barging out and yells at me for pressing the assistance button and annoying him and his crew."

These tweets spread like wildfire on twitter with many users expressing their displeasure on this incident. Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh took to twitter to assure people and passengers that he had taken a note of the incident and had directed his office and the airline to look into the matter.

IndiGo said in a statement: "We are aware of the complaint raised by a passenger on flight 6E 806 flying from Chennai to Bangalore last night. The matter is under internal review and necessary action will be taken. We are very cognizant of the needs of its customers and it is our constant endeavour to provide a courteous and hassle-free experience to our passengers. Our customer relations team has been in touch with the customer to ensure that her concern is understood well, and to help avoid any such experiences in the future." Later, the Aviation Minister said that the pilot has been 'off-rostered' pending full enquiry.

This is the second such incident reported against the crew and staff of IndiGo. In a similar incident in October 2017, a passenger was prevented from getting on a coach in Delhi Airport. The video shared on social media shows how the passenger was assaulted by ground staff, violently pulled back and, in the scuffle, falls to the ground. He tries to get up, but is pinned down by two employees, one of them smiling.