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Technical snag 'imprisons' passengers on Singapore Airlines flight to Kolkata

A Facebook post of a passenger accuses cabin crew of either ignoring or threatening travellers on board after they began inquiring about a delay running into several hours.

Technical snag 'imprisons' passengers on Singapore Airlines flight to Kolkata File photo

New Delhi: A Singapore Airlines flight SQ516 to Kolkata on June 8 suffered a number of delays due to a technical fault with passengers on board kept waiting for hours inside what they claim was a claustrophobic aircraft.

In a video posted on Facebook, one of the passengers onboard has said that the airline staff, as well as the ground staff, refused to help after the passengers were informed that the plane's AC unit was being repaired. The passenger writes in her post that instead of letting travellers off the plane, they were made to wait for several hours leading many to vomit and feel extreme uneasy. When passengers began asking the cabin crew for details, they were reportedly either ignored or told to return to their seats and buckle up. On one occassion, a few passengers were allegedly even threatened that they would be arrested or put on another flight a few days later without any compensation.

The post goes on to highlight that there were children and elderly passengers but no effort was made to provide assistance of any kind. When ground staff entered the plane, they apparently only heard the passenger's woes but did not address the concerns. The post then made references to a possible racial undercurrent for the treatment meted out and outlined that most of the passengers on board felt like prisoners.



When Zeenews.com contacted Singapore Airlines, the company replied saying that the delay was due to a technical snag - without confirming if it was indeed the AC that was being fixed. "Singapore Airlines flight SQ516 operating from Singapore to Kolkata on 8 June 2018, experienced technical issues on ground resulting in a 2 hour 52 minutes delay. Singapore Airlines sincerely apologises for the inconvenience caused to the passengers on board," read the official reply.