Flyers scramble for refunds, rescheduling after Pune airport runway closure

PUNE: The cancellation of 99 flights and diversion of 12 arriving planes at the Pune airport because of the hard landing of a Sukhoi 30 MKI fighter jet on Friday night left thousands of flyers stranded, compelling them to take a patience test for hours amid confusion.

Some stood in long queues for a refund or rescheduling on Saturday morning. A few undertook rigorous journeys after spending a hefty sum for new tickets.

The Pune airport'srunway was closed from 10.25pm on Friday till beyond 8am on Saturday. The first plane landed from Goa at 8.58am. The first departure was to Delhi at 9.17am.

"Flight operations have now returned to normal. Airlines have coordinated with passengers regarding delays, cancellations, and diversions," Pune airport director Santosh Dhoke said.

Flyers were hassled beyond limits because of the unforeseen disruption in flight operations. Rahoul Nagdda, booked on a flight on Saturday morning to Delhi and then to Srinagar, stood in a queue for about four hours to reschedule his flight."I had reached the airport by 5am for my 7.30am flight. There was total chaos at the facility. After almost an hour, we came to know that the flight was cancelled. The airline should have sent an intimation earlier."

Nagdda, along with many other flyers, stood in the queue from 6.30am to 10.30am to reschedule the flight. "Authorities claimed that flight operations resumed by 8am, but I didn't see any take-offs till 9am," the NIBM Road resident said.

Agha Mesaam Hyder had landed from Bhubaneswar in Pune on Friday afternoon. He had a connecting flight to Bhopal at 1am on Saturday.

"The ‘silent' airport turned chaotic around 10.30pm on Friday. IndiGo staffers told me that there was a problem on the runway and I could cancel my flight or reschedule it. I found just one option — go to Mumbai, take a flight from Mumbai to Ahmedabad and from there to Bhopal. I reached Mumbai airport in a cab and landed in Ahmedabad at 8am on Saturday. I had to book a hotel because my onward flight to Bhopal is around 3.30pm. I am slated to reach home by 8pm if everything goes well," he toldTOIon Saturday afternoon.

Magarpatta's Joy Abraham said, "My flight from Chandigarh to Pune was scheduled at 10.50 pm. I got a message that the flight was delayed around 7pm, after I started for the airport. The delay kept increasing in 30-minute blocks. There was an announcement that the Pune airport was not available for landing because of a technical situation. There were roughly 150 to 170 passengers waiting. Around 1am, the flight was finally cancelled. While IndiGo provided basic refreshments and the ground staff mentioned about accommodation, it was not provided at the counter."

He said, Fares jumped significantly after the cancellation of the Pune flight. I booked a morning Air India flight to Mumbai spending Rs.19,000. From there, I took a taxi to Pune, which took another four hours. Overall, the lack of clear communication and limited support made the situation difficult for passengers."

A woman and her daughter from Kothrud, supposed to fly to Bengaluru and then to Sydney, found themselves in a spot on Saturday. "The flight to Bengaluru at 10.30am got cancelled. My wife and daughter had reached the airport around 4am and were stranded there for hours. Now, we have been able to reschedule the entire trip," the husband of the stranded woman said, requesting anonymity.

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