28 IndiGo flights cancelled at Pune airport, travel disruptions continue

Passengers travelling with children also faced difficulties. “My 11.30 am Kolkata to Pune flight (6E 276) was cancelled. They put me on a flight to Hyderabad scheduled for 5 pm, from where I was supposed to connect to Pune. That flight finally departed at 12 am, and I missed the Pune connection. I had to travel with my seven-year-old by bus to Pune, and my luggage still hasn’t arrived so I now have to follow it up as well,” said Swapnali Gujar.

Several passengers said they have been visiting the airport repeatedly to resolve their issues. Mukesh Ahuja, who had planned a six-day trip and was trying to cancel his rescheduled Pune to Jaipur flight (6E 6117), said, “There is no online process, so I’ve had to come here repeatedly. My entire trip is now cancelled because of this chaos,” he said.

Amid the uncertainty, some families said they were unwilling to take risks. Geeta Bapat, who was at the airport to confirm her father’s Pune to Nagpur flight (6E 6093) scheduled for 2.40 pm, said, “I won’t let him board until they confirm the flight is actually taking off.”

Passengers also reported diversions and loss of critical belongings. “My Kolkata to Pune flight (6E 476) scheduled for December 4 at 9.25 pm was delayed and was diverted to Hyderabad after reaching Pune airspace. We were stranded in Hyderabad for 14 hours without refreshments. They later put me on a Shirdi flight as my child had an emergency. We travelled to Pune by cab from Shirdi, but my luggage is missing. I’m in the merchant navy, my certificates were in that bag,” said Joel Pinto.

Some continued to return to the airport in the hope of retrieving their baggage. Radhika Bali, who travelled from Turkey to Mumbai via IndiGo (6E 0018), said her baggage was lost upon arrival in Mumbai. “We waited in Mumbai for a day in the hope of getting it. For the last three days, we’ve been coming to Pune airport looking for our luggage. I have a small, jet-lagged child at home, and we’ve had to buy everything again. There has been no communication or compensation. We barely get 20 to 30 days to meet our parents, and most of that time is being spent in this hassle,” she said.

Passengers stranded in other cities also reported last-minute cancellations. A working professional whose Delhi to Pune flight (6E 2471) scheduled for 4.40 am on December 8 was cancelled said, “I got a message on December 7 around 4 pm saying that the flight was cancelled. I very well knew about the issues at IndiGo. But as the issues were going on for the past few days I thought they would send a cancellation message earlier and not just 12 hours before the flight. Now I am not able to reach Pune for my job on Monday. The flights throughout this week are very expensive, especially Monday and Tuesday. I had to book an alternate SpiceJet flight that lands on Wednesday morning. This has caused immense trouble for my work,” he said.

As cancellations, delays and baggage delays continue for several days, the situation at Pune airport remains chaotic with passengers struggling to retrieve their belongings and distressed about their onward travel.