Vistara business class passenger with limited mobility has taken the airline to the consumer court seeking a compensation of Rs 10 crore for the difficulties she had to face on a recent Colombo-Mumbai flight over wheelchair-related issues, the Times of India reported.
The complainant also alleged that after the aircraft landed in Mumbai, no wheelchair was provided, and the airline crew asked her to alight and walk down a ramp when she was in severe pain and couldn’t even get up from her seat without help.
Vistara said the passenger had not declared her pre-existing condition. It also said that on that particular day, an accident had hit flight schedules at the Mumbai airport, which led to the problems.
On September 14, Monica Gupta, who suffers from acute rheumatoid arthritis, was returning to Mumbai on flight UK-132 with her 81-year-old mother, her brother and nephews after a family vacation in Colombo. Mudhit Gupta, the complainant’s brother, said although they had booked wheelchairs for his sister and mother, they had to wait for an hour at the Colombo airport to get them.
Due to an accident that led to a temporary runway closure at the Mumbai airport, their Vistara flight that departed at 4pm was diverted to Hyderabad and eventually landed in Mumbai around 11 pm. “The long flight worsened my sister’s condition. The aircraft was parked in a remote bay, but no wheelchair was provided. The crew pressured my sister to walk down the ramp, when she was not in a position to even get up from her seat,” said Mudhit. “The rest of the passengers deplaned. The crew, too, left the aircraft, leaving my family behind,” he said. Around 11.45pm, one wheelchair was arranged and they exited the aircraft. But they had to wait for another 30 minutes before a passenger coach bus came and took them to the terminal building, he said.
In a statement, Vistara said: “The inconvenience caused... due to a series of unfortunate events, which were completely out of the airline’s control, is deeply regretted. The customers had booked a ramp wheelchair with no declaration of any pre-existing medical conditions. Hence, an ambulift was not arranged at any of the airports.” Referring to the runway closure, it said that caused subsequent congestion and multiple disruptions, leading to a delay in arranging the wheelchair. “As the wheelchair arrived, our staff extended all possible assistance,” it said.
