National Desk
31 May
Sandeep Dhand Ludhiana
On Friday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) issued a show-cause notice to Air India regarding the inordinate delays of two international flights and the airline’s failure to adequately care for its passengers. The flights in question, AI 183 from Delhi to San Francisco on May 30 and AI 179 from Mumbai to San Francisco on May 24, experienced significant delays, causing discomfort to passengers due to insufficient cabin cooling.
The DGCA highlighted that this is not an isolated incident, but part of a pattern of Air India’s repeated non-compliance with regulatory norms related to passenger care. These include provisions for handling denied boarding, flight cancellations, and delays. The regulator emphasized that Air India has “time and again” failed to meet its obligations in these areas.
The show-cause notice demands that Air India explain why enforcement action should not be taken against it for these violations. This action follows the intervention of Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, who took notice of the delays and the resulting passenger inconvenience. The DGCA’s notice underscores the need for airlines to adhere strictly to passenger care guidelines and ensure timely and comfortable travel experiences.