Bengaluru- Severe disruptions in IndiGo Airlines operations — caused by technical issues and a shortage of pilots — have left thousands of passengers stranded at Bengaluru’s Kempegowda International Airport, officials said on Friday.
The widespread cancellations and delays have caused people to miss weddings, funerals, and religious trips, prompting anger over poor communication and inadequate on-ground support.
Bride & Groom Forced to Attend Their Own Reception Online
One of the most heartbreaking incidents involved a couple traveling from Bhubaneswar to Hubballi. Their IndiGo flight was abruptly cancelled, making them miss their own wedding reception.
With no alternative travel options, the bride and groom joined their reception virtually, while the bride’s parents sat in the seats reserved for the newlyweds and received greetings from nearly 650 guests.
A video of the event has gone viral.
The reception of Medha Kshir Sagar and Sangam Das was held on Wednesday at Gujarat Bhavan in Hubballi.
The bride apologized to guests online, saying she had no choice after the sudden flight cancellation.
Her father told the media:
“Our daughter’s flight was cancelled suddenly. We had invited 700 guests and all arrangements were done. We had to think of alternate plans and decided to sit on the bride and groom’s chairs. We booked tickets two months back — we don’t know what has happened with the airline.”
Multiple Passengers Left Stranded & Distressed
The disruptions have caused serious trouble for passengers traveling for urgent reasons:
- A family headed to Indore for a wedding was stuck with the groom in Bengaluru.
- Passengers couldn’t move ahead because their luggage was mistakenly routed to other flights.
- A man traveling for a funeral pleaded for clarity on whether he should proceed with the ceremony without being able to reach.
- A foreign passenger arriving from Singapore for a connecting flight to Goa said her luggage wasn’t returned and no alternative flight was available — calling the experience “a nightmare.”
- Pilgrims from Hyderabad on their way to Sabarimala via Kochi were stranded and said they were not provided even basic necessities like drinking water or showers. They added that the delays forced them to break several mandatory religious rituals.
IndiGo Confirms Large-Scale Flight Cancellations
In a statement issued Thursday morning, IndiGo confirmed the cancellation of:
- 52 arriving flights, and
- 50 departing flights from Bengaluru Airport.
Later, the airline issued an advisory stating:
“IndiGo flights from Bengaluru to Mumbai and Delhi stand cancelled until 23:59 hours on December 5. For flights to other destinations, passengers are advised to check the latest status before heading to the airport.”
Airport authorities said teams were working with IndiGo and operational partners to reduce inconvenience and support stranded passengers.
With inputs from IANS