HYDERABAD: Passengers bound for the US were left high and dry at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) here on Wednesday with the Air India cancelling the Hyderabad-Delhi-Chicago flight following fears that a 5G rollout by AT&T Inc and Verizon Communications Inc near the American airports would interfere with airwaves which the altimeters of the flights use.
This is considered a grave safety hazard. As the decision to suspend the flight was sudden, the passengers, who were caught off-guard, resorted to a protest at the airport. They were annoyed that there were no airline officials to explain to them as to why their flight was cancelled.
Flight cancelled: AI yet to refund passengers
The next direct flight from RGIA operated by Air India will be on Friday and it is not known whether that flight too would be cancelled. The officials hoped that by then the issue would be resolved in the US. Meanwhile, some passengers were unhappy that even the airlines did not refund the fare immediately after the flight has been cancelled.
“Refund not credited to our account so far. Customer Care No: not responding... Several tries made. Please refund our fare (sic),” tweeted one of the passengers.
When contacted, the AI officials said that they would take care of their passengers by accommodating them on other rescheduled flights after the issue is resolved or would make a full refund to the passengers.