An Indian airline travelling from Kolkata to Bagdogra has been accused of tormenting its passengers after the airline put the air-conditioning blower on full in order to vacate the plane.
The airline asked the passengers to disembark without an explanation. However, when the passengers refused to comply with the airline's demands, after being delayed for several hours, the airline blasted the air-conditioning at full.
Indian Oil Corporation Executive Director Dipankar Ray who was traveling in the flight also complained about the crew’s impolite behaviour.
"The flight was scheduled to depart at 9 am and was initially delayed by 30 minutes. After boarding, we kept sitting inside the aircraft for one-and-a-half hours with no food or water at all,".
The flight captain then instructed all passengers to de- board without any explanation, he added.
"When passengers refused to deboard due to heavy rains outside, the captain put the air-conditioning blower on full blast to hound the passengers out. It created a scary scene as heavy fog was created inside the plane and it was very suffocating," he added.
He further said that many women passengers started vomiting and children were crying.
According to the post, AirAsia, the flight in question had explained that the four-hour delay was due to a "technical snag." When flyers allegedly objected to getting off the plane because of the heavy rain outside, Ray said that the pilot "put blowers in [sic] full blast to hound passengers out."
AirAsia India has since apologised for the flight delay and said that the heavy mist in the plane was caused by high humidity conditions.
According to AirAsia's representative, the fog depicted in Ray's video was a "normal occurrence" that takes place "when the air conditioning is operated in high humidity conditions."
The representative added: "There was no danger to any of the occupants on-board the aircraft as the cool conditioned air being circulated was condensing." The airline representative also said that affected guests were "offered refreshments and provided with alternate arrangements."
On the other hand, Ray said, the airline had asked the passengers to go to the food court in the airport after deplaning them and show the boarding passes to get food. "When we reached the food court, they refused us. There was no communication from AirAsia at all.
We had to pay. When we were boarding the flight second time, then they gave us one sandwich and a 250 ml water bottle. This is an unacceptable treatment," he added.
