New Delhi, (Samajweekly) The IndiGo pilot assaulted inside the aircraft by a passenger, refused to take the latter’s ‘sorry’ who was offloaded and handed over to the security, another viral video showed.
The incident took place on Sunday inside the Goa-bound IndiGo flight from here when the pilot was assaulted inside the aircraft by a passenger while making an announcement of a delay. The pilot later filed a complaint following which the Delhi Police registered an FIR.
A video of the altercation went viral on social media platforms, sparking outrage and condemnation from users.
The viral footage shows a passenger, identified as Sahil Kataria, wearing a yellow hoodie, running up to the aircraft’s pilot and physically assaulting him in a fit of anger.
“Chalana hai to chala, nahi to gate khole. (If you’re going to fly, then fly. If not then open the gate),” he can be heard saying in the video, which was being filmed by a third person, also a passenger.
The incident occurred while the pilot was addressing passengers about the delay, attributed to Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms, leading to a crew change after prolonged delays.
In another viral video, Kataria is seen apologising apparently to the pilot. Kataria while being deboarded could be heard saying “sorry sir”, in reply, the person shooting the video can be heard saying “no sorry”.
The delay in the IndiGo flight (6E-2175) destined for Goa was reportedly due to heavy fog and traffic congestion at the airport.
As per sources, the assault took place on Sunday afternoon when tensions were running high among the passengers due to the extended wait for hours following traffic congestion owing to poor visibility.
According to police, Anup Kumar, the co-pilot of flight and security personnel came to the IGI police station and gave a complaint regarding one passenger, namely Sahil kataria, who had assaulted and misbehaved with the co-pilot on Sunday.
“He misbehaved in flight and hit the co-pilot and made a nuisance inside the aircraft. On the basis of complaint a case under sections 323, 341, 290 of The Indian Penal Code and 22 Aircraft rules has been registered and investigation taken up,” said a senior police official.
Meanwhile, IndiGo said that an internal committee has been constituted for appropriate action and inclusion of the passenger on the ‘no-fly list’ as laid down in regulatory guidelines
“During the announcement of a flight delay by the first officer of flight 6E2175, a passenger assaulted the first officer. As per protocol, the passenger was declared unruly and handed over to the local law enforcement agencies for further action. The incident is being referred to the independent internal committee for appropriate action and inclusion of the passenger on the ‘no-fly list’ as laid down in regulatory guidelines,” said the airline spokesperson.
