Air India Mumbai-London Flight Delayed 7 Hours After Technical Snag Leaves Flyers Stranded

Passengers on Air India’s Mumbai–London flight (AI129) faced a harrowing ordeal on Saturday morning as the aircraft remained grounded for nearly seven hours due to a technical snag, leaving flyers stranded at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.

The flight, originally scheduled to depart at 6:30 am, is now expected to take off at 1 pm, Air India officials confirmed.

According to passengers, boarding began around 6 am, roughly 40 minutes behind schedule, but once seated, travellers were forced to wait inside the aircraft for over 90 minutes before the crew announced a technical issue that prevented takeoff.

Following the announcement, the passengers were asked to deboard the plane at around 8:15 am, after which hand baggage was rechecked as the airline attempted to rectify the issue. Initially, the flight’s departure was rescheduled to noon, but it was later revised again to 1 pm, sparking frustration among travellers who had stayed awake through the night to catch the early-morning departure.

Passengers Voice Frustration

Several passengers took to social media platforms to share their experiences, criticizing Air India for its lack of timely communication and inadequate facilities during the prolonged delay. Some passengers reported being kept inside the aircraft for over an hour without proper updates before being asked to disembark.

“We’ve been here since 5 am. First, we boarded late, then got stuck inside the plane for more than an hour before they asked everyone to get off. No clear updates,” wrote one passenger on X.

An Air India spokesperson confirmed the delay, citing technical difficulties as the cause. “Air India flight AI129, scheduled to take off from Mumbai for London at 6.30 am, is delayed due to technical issues. The flight will now depart at 1 pm. Passengers have been provided with refreshments,” the airline said in an official statement.

Airport Operations Briefly Affected

The disruption comes just a day after flight operations at Mumbai airport were briefly impacted by an air traffic control (ATC) glitch at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. The ATC malfunction on Friday led to delays and diversions of over 800 flights, creating a cascading effect across several major airports including Mumbai, Jaipur, and Lucknow.

Although the Delhi ATC issue was resolved by Friday evening, residual delays continued to affect operations into Saturday morning.

Growing Concerns Over Air India’s Operational Reliability

The latest incident adds to a series of operational setbacks faced by Air India, which has been working to rebuild its reputation under the Tata Group’s ownership. While the airline has made strides in fleet modernization and service upgrades, technical disruptions and scheduling inconsistencies remain an ongoing challenge.

For passengers of flight AI129, however, Saturday’s experience was far from satisfactory. Many expressed hope that the airline would take steps to improve communication and contingency handling during such technical delays in the future.

With global air traffic increasing ahead of the holiday season, aviation experts have stressed the need for proactive maintenance and real-time passenger support to prevent similar disruptions at India’s busiest airports.