Aditya Kondawar, vice president of the startup ‘Complete Circle’ and an author, recently endured a nightmarish journey with Air India from Bengaluru to Pune that left him vowing to “never fly” with the airline again.
Taking to X, Kondawar shared the “valuable lesson” he learned from this ordeal, sarcastically thanking Air India. “I am never flying Air India Express or Air India in my life again. I will pay 100% extra if needed but will choose other airlines that are on time,” he expressed, adding that he would rather travel by bullock cart.
The flight, scheduled for 9:50 pm, finally took off around 12:15 am. But for Kondawar, the nightmare didn’t end there. He described the aircraft as filthy, with dirty, stained seats and a horrible odor.
His long day, which included walking through a factory and multiple management interactions, ended at 3 am when he finally reached home.
“I have immense respect for the Tata group and their leaders. I expect perfection from them, and this was a disaster,” Kondawar wrote.
Air India Express quickly apologized, citing reasons beyond their control for the delay and promising to address the cleanliness issues.
However, Kondawar remained skeptical, responding that the airline would continue losing customers if such service persisted.
Comparing the plane’s cleanliness to a Mumbai local train, Kondawar’s post sparked a flood of reactions from other disgruntled passengers. One user remarked, “They won’t mend ways. It has become worse after the takeover. The service level has become pathetic.”
Several other users shared their own horror stories. One described the “worst vacation start” with a delayed Hyderabad to Delhi flight, while another, Vishal, recounted how his flight to Goa was delayed over four hours, followed by a three-hour isolation due to a found bag and an hour-long baggage clearance.
Air India Express responded to each complaint, assuring customers that such experiences are not their standard and asking for booking details to investigate further.
