The Hindu : Front Page : British Airways flight delayed by 12 hours

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Apr 16, 2007
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British Airways flight delayed by 12 hours

Staff Reporter

Crew complained of lack of sleep

NEW DELHI: A London-bound British Airways flight BA-142 scheduled to depart from the Indira Gandhi International Airport here early on Sunday morning was delayed by over 12 hours as the crew complained of lack of adequate sleep.

The flight was scheduled to leave at 2.10 a.m. with over 200 passengers, but at the eleventh hour the captain decided to delay the flight as the flight and cabin crew had not got enough rest. "The entire crew had a disturbed sleep because of some constant noise in the hotel they were put up in. They did not have the mandatory 12-hour rest between flights and thus the captain decided to delay the flight," said Radhika Raikhy, a British Airways spokesperson. All the passengers were disembarked after the midnight drama, leaving many of them fuming. When the airways could not making any alternative arrangement for the passengers, rooms were booked for them in three hotels, including Le Meridien, to spend the night. The flight departed at 3.15 p.m. with the passengers.

Though the airways officials claimed that every possible care was taken for the comfort of passengers, some complained that it did not deal with the situation well and there were not even adequate number of rooms.We had made sure there were enough rooms before they checked in. Still we have received complaints about rooms not being enough." We are investigating the complaints," Ms. Raikhy said.

Some passengers said that none of the British Airways officials was around to escort them to the hotels.

Later, British Airways issued a statement apologising to its passengers for the delay. The airways said: "We apologise to all our passengers for the delay on today's BA-142 from Delhi to London Heathrow. The flight was delayed in Delhi to ensure that the flight and cabin crew complied with safety regulations governing crew rest. The safety and security of our passengers and crew is of paramount importance."

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