'Medicines Running Out, Limited Food': Stranded Air India Fliers Anxious As They Wait For Ferry Flight
Stranded Air India passengers battle limited food and uncertainty in the Russian town of Magadan as they wait for the ferry flight.
An entirely different place, no knowledge of language, unfamiliar food and uncertainty- this is the situation of 216 passengers who were onboard the Delhi-San Francisco flight that made an emergency landing in the Russian town of Magadan on Tuesday. Unaware of the fact their journey would be longer than they expected, the passengers are now stranded in Russia where Air India does not have any ground staff to coordinate as per its requirement.
Several visuals are doing rounds on social media showing the pax sleeping on mattresses on the ground in the makeshift arrangement inside schools and other buildings. They are finding it difficult to coordinate with local authorities due to the language barriers. Apart from this, the food there is mostly non-veg and hence some are surviving on bread and soup, NDTV reported citing a passenger.
#AI173 with 216 passengers stuck in Magadan, Russia since 2 pm IST Tue 6/6 after technical issues. Passengers staying at makeshift accommodation in a nearby school. Conditions have become miserable, no updates from @airindia, bad food. Crew not helping. @PMOIndia @DrSJaishankar pic.twitter.com/05NprP9PCw
— Dipankar Niranjan (@dip_niranjan) June 7, 2023
The Air India flight, a Boeing 777, was travelling from Delhi to San Francisco with 216 passengers and 16 crew members when it encountered a technical issue with one of its engines and had landed in Russia.
Yesterday, @AirIndia flight 173 from Delhi to San Francisco was diverted to Magadan, in rural Russia w/ over 220, mostly elderly, passengers.
— Tarun Shukla (@shukla_tarun) June 7, 2023
Sat in plane for 6 hrs & after 18 hrs now, no word from Air India, @MEAIndia.
Here is a just taken video from a jittery passenger : pic.twitter.com/n6qymnvXrc
A user tweeted a video shared by a passenger who said that he was stranded here for over 18 hours and there had been no word from Air India. The passenger reportedly said that most of the passengers are elderly.
Speaking to NDTV, a passenger described the situation as challenging.
"There are over 230 people. Lots of children and older people. Our bags are still in the aircraft. We were sent on buses to different locations. Some people were sent to a school and are lying on mattresses on the floor. The toilet facilities are not right. Language is a barrier. The food here is very, very different. There's a lot of seafood and non-veg. Some people are just eating bread and soup. Older people running out of medicine," he said, as quoted by NDTV.
Praising Russian authorities for their help, the passenger said, "They (Russian authorities) have been nice. We have been lucky because we are in a college dorm. We just got Wi-Fi about an hour ago, so we have been able to be in touch with our families....But the other place, where some more passengers are present, is a school. They have just moved the benches and people are lying on mattresses in the classroom. There are about 20 people in one room. I heard they couldn't arrange proper food. They were given Coke and bread," he said.
"There was an 88-year-old gentleman next to me on the flight. I don't know what people like him are going through. There is a lady with two infants. She had a really tough time. The food here is mostly non-veg. The authorities here are nice, but there is a language barrier. We are not allowed to move outside. We were told we would be on a flight by this time today," Gagan said, as quoted by NDTV.
Air India Announces Ferry Flight
Air India on Wednesday announced to operate a ferry flight from Mumbai at 1300 hrs on to Russia to fly the passengers bound for San Francisco, who are currently stranded, following a technical issue en route. "A ferry flight is scheduled to operate to GDX (Magadan) from Mumbai, at 1300 hours IST on June 7, subject to necessary regulatory clearances, which would take passengers and crew of AI173 onward to San Francisco,” the airline said in the statement on Wednesday, as reported by the news agency PTI. The ferry flight would be carrying food and other essentials for the passengers, it said.
Important Update regarding AI 173 Delhi to SFO pic.twitter.com/DibzwCoGU4
— Air India (@airindia) June 7, 2023
The airline also said that "all of us at Air India are concerned about the passengers and staff and are making every effort possible to operate the ferry flight as soon as possible, and to ensure the health, safety, and security of all while they wait," as quoted by PTI.
Given the infrastructural limitations around the remote airport, "we can confirm that all passengers were eventually moved to a makeshift accommodation, after making sincere attempts to accommodate passengers in hotels locally with the help of local government authorities," Air India said.
US Monitoring Situation
The United States on Tuesday said it is closely monitoring the situation after a San Francisco-bound Air India flight made an emergency landing in Russia, as reported by the news agency PTI. Flight AI173 from Delhi was diverted to Magadan in Russia on Tuesday owing to an engine glitch, the Tata Group-owned private carrier said in a statement last evening. The flight, carrying 216 passengers and 16 crew, landed safely. The aircraft is undergoing mandatory checks, the airline said. The passengers are being provided all support on the ground, it added.
"We are aware of a US-bound flight that had to make an emergency landing in Russia and are continuing to monitor that situation closely. I'm not able to confirm how many US citizens were aboard the flight at this time," State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters at his daily news conference, as quoted by PTI.
"It was a flight that was bound for the United States. So, it is, of course, likely that there are American citizens on board. There's public reporting from Air India that they are sending – what my understanding is – a replacement aircraft to the destination to have the passengers carry on for their route, but I would defer to the air carrier to speak to anything further on this," Patel said in response to a question.
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