Air India Passenger Recounts His Business Class 'Nightmare' Flight, Netizens React

Vineeth K, a passenger who reserved a business class seat for his office trip to Newark, USA, criticised Air India and shared his 'horror story' with the Tata-owned airlines on X.

He also stated that he had Etihad Airlines for a much cheaper price but chose to go with Air India due to its direct flight service.

Photo Credit: X/@DealsDhamaka

His post detailed a series of issues that turned his journey into 'no less than a nightmare'. Upon boarding flight AI 105, and despite a 25-minute delay, the business class seat he was given didn't meet his expectations. He shared photos showing worn-out seats with dirty covers, and on top of that, many seats were non-functional.

"Horror Story. After flying with Emirates for a few years, I recently moved to Air India as they offer direct flights to NY, Chicago & London which are my frequent travel destinations. Yesterday's flight was no less than a nightmare. Booked business class (office trip). The seats were not clean, worn off & of the 35 at least 5 seats were not functional. 25 mins delayed take off," Vineeth said on X.

Vineeth's troubles continued with the food service as well.

He explained, "Woke up after a few hours, the food was served and it was uncooked (never faced this in AI), the fruits were stale (everyone onboard returned it back). TV/Screen never worked. Not that I would have watched, just tried and it showed 'Not Found' error. After all this, final nail in the coffin is THEY BROKE MY LUGGAGE."

Vineeth also shared screenshot of the now-deleted response from Air India.

"Dear Sir, we're sorry for the discomfort and we never want our passengers to face such inconvenience. Please DM us your booking details, seat number and DBR/filer reference number. We'll promptly look into it," it read.

In the same X thread, the airline said, "Dear Sir, we understand your disappointment and regret the hassle you faced. Believe us, we never want our passengers to have this kind of experience. We are highlighting this internally for further review."

Vineeth's social media post received a strong response from users. As per the users, this is not the first time passengers have shared their disgust at the services offered by Air India.

One user said, "I really don't know the AI strategy. They have brought new planes. They should replace these old ones in service sooner. Not sure on the new A350 (is that long range?)."

Another user wrote, "I am really concerned as Vistara is merging with them, will need to travel indigo."

"Had a similar experience on AI flight from Delhi to Singapore. Worn our seats, non-working screens, flight delayed by 30 mins, got cooked for an hour as AC was non functioning properly till we took off. To their credit they escorted us swiftly through Delhi Airport transfers on our way back," read one comment.

"As a policy, I always avoid AI for international flights and keep it as last option for domestic. Can't spoil the trip," remarked a person.