A passenger aboard an IndiGo flight physically assaulted the aircraft’s pilot while he was announcing delays. A video of the assault has gone viral on social media.
The incident took place on Sunday morning aboard IndiGo aircraft 6E-2175 from Delhi to Goa, which was delayed several hours by fog. The passenger has been identified as Sahil Kataria. He has been the target of a complaint from the pilot, and the airline is currently preparing to pursue an official lawsuit.
In the viral video, a man in a yellow hoodie abruptly ran up from the last row and hit Anup Kumar, the flight’s co-captain, who had replaced the previous crew due to Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms after several hours of delay.
A passenger punched an Indigo capt in the aircraft as he was making delay announcement. The guy ran up from the last row and punched the new Capt who replaced the previous crew who crossed FDTL. Unbelievable ! @DGCAIndia @MoCA_GoI pic.twitter.com/SkdlpWbaDd
— Capt_Ck (@Capt_Ck) January 14, 2024
FDT laws are designed to protect the health and safety of pilots and flight attendants by requiring sufficient rest intervals and reducing the risk of fatigue-related accidents. Establishing FDTL is the responsibility of the Directorate-General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
The incident was filmed by a third passenger as s/he was recording the captain, who was announcing a further delay in departure. Reports indicate Mr Kataria – who is now in Delhi Police’s custody – came charging up from his seat in the last row, raising additional questions about safety on board planes.
Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Monday said unruly passenger behaviour is unacceptable, amid a passenger assaulting an IndiGo pilot while he was making an announcement on flight delay.
In a post on X, Scindia said all stakeholders are working round the clock to minimise fog-related impact.
Yesterday, Delhi witnessed unprecedented fog wherein visibility fluctuated for several hours, and at times, dropped to zero between 5 AM to 9 AM.
The authorities, therefore, were compelled to enforce a shut-down of operations for some time even on CAT III runways (CAT III…
— Jyotiraditya M. Scindia (@JM_Scindia) January 15, 2024
Actor Sonu Sood also condemned the act on his X account.
Soon self defence training programs will become mandatory for the airline staff, if people continue to behave in such unruly ways!! pic.twitter.com/AVaaoCol5h
— sonu sood (@SonuSood) January 15, 2024
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