Stranded in Turkey, Virgin Atlantic passengers to resume journey to Mumbai, await technical clearance

This update follows over 24 hours of confusion, exhaustion, and minimal communication. According to passengers, they were confined to a small terminal with limited food, only a few restrooms, and no airline staff available to assist them.

Accommodation was finally provided late Thursday night after repeated requests and intervention from the Indian Embassy in Ankara. “Late at night, we were taken to a hotel about 20 minutes away from the airport we had been confined to. All 260 of us were accommodated across five different hotels, and meals were arranged. After an ordeal of more than 24 hours, we were finally able to get some proper rest,” Sumit Sheth, one of the stranded passengers, told The Indian Express.

Another passenger, who did not wish to be named, said, “We were picked up from our respective hotels at 9 am and brought to the airport, where we were told that a flight would depart at 12 noon to take us to Mumbai. While the situation has improved, we are still waiting for confirmation. We will feel relieved only once the plane actually takes off.”

The flight, originally scheduled to land in Mumbai at 1.40 am on Thursday, took off from Heathrow Airport in London on time. However, a few hours into the journey, a 17-year-old female passenger suffered a panic attack, prompting an emergency diversion to Diyarbakir, a military airport on Turkey’s border.

The landing, described by passengers as hard and bumpy, reportedly damaged the aircraft’s tyres, making it unfit for take-off.

Following the diversion, passengers were deboarded and held in a terminal with limited amenities, triggering a day-long ordeal without clarity on the next steps. Virgin Atlantic initially cited ongoing technical inspections and sent out apology emails but did not provide any immediate on-ground support or travel alternatives, according to passengers.

In a statement released Thursday night, a Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said, “The VS358 flight from London Heathrow to Mumbai on 2 April was cancelled due to an urgent medical diversion to Diyarbakır Airport in Turkey, followed by ongoing technical inspections of the aircraft. Subject to receiving the necessary technical approvals, we will continue flight VS1358 to Mumbai from Diyarbakır Airport at 12:00 hours local time on Friday, 4 April.”