Wheelchair delayed, 82-year-old AI passenger falls; airline reacts

Faced with a complaint that the non-availability of a pre-booked wheelchair resulted in the fall of an elderly woman passenger at the Delhi airport, Air India on Saturday said wheelchair or assistance was not denied to the passenger at any point in time and that first aid was given immediately.

The incident happened on March 4 at the Delhi airport, and the passenger later boarded the flight to Bengaluru.

In a post on X, the granddaughter of the 82-year-old passenger said her grandmother was treated poorly by the airline and claimed that she was not allocated a wheelchair for almost an hour.

As per the post on March 7, the passenger managed to enter the airport on foot, but still, no wheelchair or assistance was provided, and she suffered a fall.

Issuing a detailed statement after investigating the incident, Air India on Saturday (March 8) said the family members accompanying the passenger had reported at the PRM (Person with Reduced Mobility) desk located near Air India's ticketing office less than 90 minutes before the scheduled time of departure to request for a wheelchair.

"Due to the unprecedented peak demand at that hour, a wheelchair could not be made available within the 15 minutes that the passenger's relatives spent waiting for it," the airline said, adding that the claims of having waited for an hour for the wheelchair are baseless.

The granddaughter also mentioned in the post that complaints were lodged with the aviation regulator DGCA and Air India and awaiting action.

According to Air India, at no point was the wheelchair or any assistance denied to the passenger and the airline's staff cooperated with the guests throughout their journey.

"On their own accord, the passenger decided to walk along with those accompanying her. She unfortunately suffered a fall in the airport premises," the statement said.

The airline also mentioned that Delhi airport officials and the airport doctor on duty immediately attended to her and administered first aid.

Elaborating further, Air India noted that the airport doctor's offer for additional medical attention was not accepted, and the family members insisted on continuing their travel to Bengaluru.

While noting that as requested by the family members, its staff escorted the passenger for further medical attention at the Bengaluru airport premises, the airline also said it has reached out to the passenger's family.