Technical snag delays Air Deccan plane

Mumbai: Passengers on Air Deccan flight DN-615 from Mumbai to Coimbatore—the aircraft was scheduled to depart at 7.55 am—were stranded at Mumbai domestic airport after a technical snag temporarily grounded the plane. Asked to board the plane at 10 am, the passengers were deplaned in 20 minutes after the Ground Power Unit (GPU) malfunctioned.
After a two-hour wait, passengers were asked to board the plane for the second time at noon but the flight took off only at 2.15 pm due to heavy air traffic.
‘‘We reached Coimbatore at 3.40 pm,’’ said journalist with a Hindi daily Nand Kishore.
Rakesh Kumar, an employee of a private firm in Mumbai said: ‘‘We were subjected to an endless wait and the behaviour of the Air Deccan officials was atrocious.’’
Though the airline has, as compensation, offered a free ticket to all the passengers on the same route—Mumbai to Coimbatore—it was not well received.
Said Kumar: ‘‘The ticket is not even a return."
Vijaya Menon, spokesperson Air Deccan said: ‘‘There was a technical snag and hence all passengers were asked to deplane due to safety reasons. We did not want to risk our passengers’ lives.’’
07/05/06 Mumbai Newsline

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