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What led to assault on IndiGo pilot in Delhi-Goa flight? Co-passenger shares first-hand account
The passenger revealed that the altercation started after the plane remained parked for some time despite doors being closed after a delay of a few hours.
A co-passenger of the 6E 2175 Delhi-Goa IndiGo flight, in which a flyer assaulted the co-pilot over several hours of delay, questioned the carrier's management and called out the "unprofessional" conduct of its staff. Sharing the first-hand account of the incident, Sanal Vij took to X (formerly Twitter) and alleged that the airline took advantage of the incident and "hid all their mismanagement and mistakes in lieu of what the passenger did."
While criticising the assault incident, the passenger also impugned the “mismanagement” and “unprofessionalism” of the IndiGo's staff that led up to the violence. He laid out the series of events that occurred before the passenger-in-question, Sahil Katariya, purportedly hit the pilot.
Also read: Aviation minister's strong words after IndiGo pilot attacked by passenger over Delhi-Goa flight delay
Scheduled to depart at 7:40 am, the passenger said the plane eventually took off at 5:35 pm after facing “multiple delays”. He said the boarding process for the flight began after a five-hour delay at 12:20 pm.
According to Vij, the passenger doors were kept open till 2:50 pm despite boarding being complete by around 12:50 pm. He said the delay was attributed to the air traffic control not giving a green light due to congestion.
“However, at 1:30 pm, the pilot announced they were waiting for a crew member and the flight would depart shortly,” Vij wrote, adding, “It became evident that ground staff and crew provided misinformation.”
He further complained that the crew was engaged in “lengthy conversations” with the ground staff and that multiple requests for water from elderly passengers were “ignored”.
The altercation began after the concerned crew member arrived around 2:40 pm, but the plane remained settled for some time, according to Vij.
One of the passengers resorted to violence after the co-pilot came out at 3:20 pm to the passenger cabin to address the issue, he said. However, he raised concerns over the airline's handling of the situation after the plane remained parked for hours and passengers faced a delay of almost 10 hours “without food”. He said the food was provided to them at 4 pm.
About the assault incident
A video surfaced on social media which showed Sahil Katariya hitting the pilot moments after he came out from the cockpit to make an announcement. In the short video clip of the incident inside the aircraft, other crew members could be seen shouting at Katariya, in a yellow jacket, after he hit the pilot.
The passenger was later arrested Katariya, and a case was registered against him.
The airline said in a release that the matter has been referred to an independent internal committee for including Katariya on the ‘no-fly list'.
