Hundreds of UAE Residents Stranded After Air India Express Cancels Flights; Flight Prices Soar
Airfares between India and the UAE have risen astronomically after thousands of passengers were stranded following the cancellation or delay of more than 70 Air India Express international and domestic flights due to senior crew members calling in sick.
Entrepreneur Kishor Kumar was one of those impacted by the flight cancellation. “I was scheduled to fly from Kochi to Sharjah at 2.10am,” he said, speaking to sources from India. “When I reached the airport, the flight was still showing as departing on time. However, by 11.30am, the check-in gates had still not opened and we were informed that there may be some delays.”
As news of the flight cancellations spread, ticket prices of other airlines shot up. “One person needed to get back urgently and he immediately booked a ticket on another flight paying Rs. 35,000 (approximately Dh1539),” said Kishor. “That is what people generally pay for a two way ticket. I later heard from a friend whose flight from Thiruvananthapuram was also cancelled that some airlines were charging up to Rs45,000 (approximately Dh2,000)“
The situation has raised concerns within the Ministry of Civil Aviation, which is closely monitoring the developments. According to sources within, the cancellations and delays began on Tuesday night and persisted into Wednesday morning, forcing the airline to curtail its scheduled operations.
The sources said that some senior crew members switched off their mobile phones just before flight operations, citing health issues. The sudden shortage of crew members led to flights being grounded, affecting both domestic and international routes.
Passengers on the affected flights were given the option to either reschedule their trip for a later date or cancel the flight and get a full refund.
This incident comes shortly after Vistara encountered similar issues on April 1, when more than 100 flights were severely affected due to pilots calling in sick.
