'No food, toilets': Indian passengers stuck at Turkey airport for over 30 hours
The Diyarbakir Airport where the passengers are stuck is a small military airport in south-eastern Turkey with limited facilities.
Over 250 passengers, most of whom are Indians, have been stuck at the Diyarbakir Airport in Turkey for over 30 hours now, after a Mumbai-bound Virgin Atlantic flight was forced to make an emergency landing there on Wednesday morning.
The flight had left London’s Heathrow airport for Mumbai and was supposed to land at 1.40am on Thursday. However, it was forced to land at Turkey’s Diyarbakir Airport after a medical emergency was reported on board. The A350-1000 aircraft couldn’t take off later as well due to a technical snag, leaving passengers stranded with no end to their ordeal in sight.
The Diyarbakir Airport is a small military airport in south-eastern Turkey with limited facilities, adding to the difficulties of the stuck passengers.
Also read: Indians stranded on Virgin Atlantic flight in Turkey to resume Mumbai journey today
Passengers’ ordeal
The flight suffered a technical snag after what the airlines described as a “hard landing”. The flight crew was sent to a hotel after deboarding the flight. However, the passengers were restricted to a small area at the airport, an India Today report said.
Aam Aadmi Party leader Preeti Sharma Menon, whose sister and niece are also on the flight, took to Twitter to share that the passengers are stuck without food, usable toilets and phone chargers.
“It’s getting grim every moment. The airport toilets are unusable. Food is scarce. Phones are running out of charge as there are no shops to buy Turkish adapters. Airport staff doesn’t even speak English,” she said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday.
Another X user, Sherilyn Fernandes, said that a relative of hers is stranded and the airport and that the passengers just got one sandwich to eat. “They just got one sandwich, my relative is stranded there. He just dropped a single text one hour back or so. If not anything just provide water and food atleast,” she posted.
“The airport staff is furious about the landing, even though it’s not the passengers’ fault. They are even demanding their passports. My family is worried as Tyson's phone battery is low, and he may soon lose contact with us. Please do something,” she added.
Airline responds
Soon after the flight was deemed unfit to fly, a spokesperson of the Virgin Atlantic airline, they are exploring several options including arranging a different flight for the passengers. “Our engineers are continuing their thorough assessments of the aircraft, and we are actively exploring all options including the operation of an alternative aircraft to ensure customers can reach Mumbai as soon as possible,” the spokesperson said.
Responding to one of Preeti Sharma Menon’s posts, the airline said that the passengers have been shifted to an overnight hotel accommodation in Turkey. This was done after the passengers were stuck for around 24 hours at the airport without basic amenities.
Replying to Menon’s post, the airline said, “We’re sincerely sorry for the disruption experienced due to the urgent medical diversion. Our customers are now in overnight hotel accommodation in Turkey, while we work towards a resolution tomorrow so they can continue their journey to Mumbai. We’ll keep all customers informed.”
The airline has also said the plane will take off for Mumbai at 12.00 pm local time today if it gets necessary technical approvals, reported news agency ANI.
“If approvals are not received, we plan instead to provide a bus transfer for customers to an alternative aircraft at another Turkish airport tomorrow to complete our customers journey to Mumbai. In the meantime, passengers are being provided with overnight hotel accommodation and refreshments in Turkey, while we work towards a resolution, and we will keep all customers informed as soon as new updates become available,” ANI reported an airline spokesperson as saying.
