Air India Express Leaves 25 Passengers Behind in Delhi

Surat, Gujarat – “This is utter negligence—we were left behind like baggage,” shouted a stranded passenger in a now-viral video capturing the frustration and chaos at Delhi Airport on Tuesday night, after Air India Express left behind 25 Surat-bound passengers.

The passengers were en route from Guwahati to the diamond city of  Surat via Delhi on the Guwahati-Delhi-Surat connecting flight, operated by Air India Express. But due to what passengers described as a “complete failure of coordination and basic customer service,” they found themselves stuck at Delhi airport while their Surat-bound aircraft took off without them.

The flight from Guwahati landed at 8:42 pm, and the Delhi-Surat leg took off at 8:56 pm—a window of merely 14 minutes, which proved impossible for the connecting passengers to make. Had the flight taken off at 9:30 pm, as some passengers suggested, all of them could have boarded.

“We were kept waiting for two hours, and then told the flight had departed. I have an important business meeting in Surat tomorrow morning, and now I don’t know what to do,” said a visibly angry passenger. Another one, preparing for a job interview in Surat, said, “This could cost me my future.”

The video shows passengers arguing with Delhi airport staff, pleading for answers and accountability. The Air India Express manager in Surat was reportedly unresponsive, further fueling the anger.

The incident reflects poorly on Air India Express, a subsidiary of the Tata Group, especially at a time when the airline is under scrutiny for frequent operational lapses. Passengers also expressed dismay at the flight’s consistent unreliability, with many calling it “regularly irregular.”

“All it needed was a 30-minute delay in departure, and none of this would have happened,” said one of the aggrieved travelers, pointing to the absence of empathy or flexibility in flight management.

With the video now circulating widely on social media, the airline faces mounting criticism from both passengers and industry observers. The footage shows heated exchanges between passengers and ground staff, and one person reportedly even fainted during the standoff, highlighting the emotional and physical toll of the incident.

Travel forums and frequent flyer groups are abuzz with complaints about Air India Express’s handling of connecting flights. Many are calling for intervention from aviation authorities and a formal apology from the airline.

As of now, no official statement has been issued by Air India Express regarding the botched connection or the grievances of the passengers left behind.