Guwahati: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has requested an investigation into how a flight from Amritsar to Singapore took off hours ahead of schedule, leaving 35 passengers behind.
The investigation was started by the aviation regulatory authorities after a Scoot Airline flight that was initially scheduled to depart from the Amritsar Airport at 7.55 pm on Wednesday took off at 3 pm, hours before its scheduled departure time.
Angry passengers who were left behind staged a protest, causing pandemonium at the airport. They filed a complaint at the airport with the appropriate authorities, according to ANI.
The customers were notified of the change in flight schedule by e-mail, airport authorities learned after speaking with airline representatives.
“Around 280 passengers were to travel to Singapore but 253 passengers were rescheduled, leaving behind over 30 passengers behind,” Amritsar airport Director told ANI.
The Amritsar Airport authority and Scoot Airline, a Singaporean low-cost carrier and fully owned subsidiary of Singapore Airlines, have both been contacted by the DGCA for more information.
All customers were informed of the change in timing by email, said the airline.
According to an airport official who spoke to ANI, the travel agency who purchased tickets for a party of 30 people failed to advise them (the passengers) of the change in flight timings, and as a result, the airline only carried the passengers who arrived on time.