I’m not sure what’s worse — that someone peed on their fellow passenger intentionally, or that the airline didn’t in any way hold the person accountable.
Drunk Air India passenger exposes himself & urinates in cabin
As reported by The Times of India, this incident happened on November 26, 2022, on Air India flight AI102 from New York (JFK) to Delhi (DEL). The story is only being made public now, because the passenger impacted by this isn’t pleased with the response she received from the airline, as she feels the issue hasn’t been taken seriously.
Specifically, a man who was drunk allegedly exposed himself and urinated on a fellow business class passenger, a woman in her 70s. According to the victim, here’s what happened:
“Shortly after lunch was served and the lights were switched off, another passenger walked to my seat, completely inebriated. He unzipped his pants, relieved himself and continued to expose me to his private parts.”
The man allegedly continued to stand there, and only moved after another passenger got involved and told him to leave. At this point the victim informed the crew of what happened:
“My clothes, shoes, and bag were completely soaked in urine. The stewardess followed me to the seat, verified that it smelled of urine, and sprayed disinfectant on my bag and shoes.”
The traveler then cleaned herself in the lavatory, and the crew gave her a new set of pajamas and slippers. She first stood in the galley for 20 minutes, and then sat in the crew seat for an hour, as she didn’t want to return to her seat.
Eventually the crew told her she had to go back to her seat. Although the crew had put sheets on the seat, it allegedly still reeked of urine. Two hours later she once again sat in a crew rest seat, where she claims to have spent the rest of the flight. While business class was full, the woman was unhappy that she wasn’t upgraded to one of the vacant first class seats. Then here’s what happened upon landing:
“Clearly the crew did not feel that taking care of a distressed passenger was a priority. At the end of the flight, the staff told me they would get me a wheelchair to ensure that I clear customs as early as possible. However, the wheelchair deposited me at a waiting area, where I waited for 30 minutes, and nobody came to get me. I finally had to clear customs on my own and collect the luggage by myself — all in Air India pyjamas and socks.”
Air India didn’t punish this passenger
Perhaps the most concerning part of this story is that Air India did nothing to punish the man who exposed himself and urinated on a fellow passenger:
“The crew was not proactive in managing a very sensitive and traumatic situation, and I had to advocate for myself throughout, waiting for long periods of time to get a response. I am distressed that the airline made no attempt to ensure my safety or comfort during this incident.”
The incident is only now being investigated, after the traveler sent a letter to the chairman of Air India parent company Tata Group, expressing her displeasure. Only now is the airline seemingly taking the situation seriously:
“Air India has reported the incident to police and regulatory authorities. We have been in regular contact with the aggrieved passenger.”
As much as there are stories in the United States where crews sometimes go on a power trip, this is the opposite extreme. Having a stranger expose himself and pee on you is assault, plain and simple, and shouldn’t be tolerated. Assuming everything happened as reported, police should have met this flight, and the man should be on the carrier’s no-fly list.
Bottom line
An Air India business class passenger on a flight from New York to Delhi reports a pretty unpleasant post-lunch surprise, when a fellow passenger exposed himself and then peed on her. According to the victim, the crew did nothing to punish the man who did this, and didn’t even do much to accommodate her. Rather they just put a sheet on the seat, and told her to sit back down.
What do you make of this Air India incident?
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