Indigo airplane returns to airport after crew spots overbooked passenger standing at the back of the plane

On Tuesday, an IndiGo flight from Mumbai to Varanasi was forced to return to the aerobridge at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) after the crew discovered an overbooked passenger shortly before takeoff.

The incident occurred around 7.50 a.m. when a crew member noticed a male passenger standing at the rear end of flight 6E 6543 while taxiing.

“The crew then alerted the pilot, and the flight had to return to the terminal,” Sandeep Pandey, one of the passengers, explained.

Airlines typically overbook to reduce the likelihood of a flight departing with empty seats.

Another passenger, Akhilesh Chaubey, who was traveling to Varanasi for work, stated, “The flight returned to the bay and the passenger was offloaded.” The airline then checked all passengers’ cabin baggage before taking off after a delay of at least an hour,” he said.

According to Flightradar24, the aircraft took off at 8.41 a.m.

“An error occurred during the passenger boarding process of 6E 6543 from Mumbai to Varanasi, when a standby passenger was assigned a seat reserved for a confirmed passenger.” The error was discovered prior to the aircraft’s departure, and the standby passenger was de-boarded. This caused a slight delay in the aircraft’s departure. IndiGo will take all necessary steps to strengthen its operational processes and apologizes for any inconvenience caused to customers, according to an airline spokesperson.

Amit Mishra, another passenger on the same flight, said they arrived in Varanasi around 10.30 a.m. “To catch a flight at 7.50am, one must arrive at the airport by 6.30am at the latest if one does not have a check-in bag. Such delays caused by the airline’s illegal motives must be addressed by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.

The aviation regulator has imposed penalties on airlines for denying boarding despite having a valid ticket. According to the DGCA’s civil aviation regulations, which were published in 2016, an airline is not required to compensate passengers if an alternative flight is scheduled within an hour of the scheduled departure time.

If the airline arranges an alternative flight within 24 hours of denial of boarding, it must pay 200% of the booked one-way basic fare, plus airline fuel charges, up to a maximum of ₹10,000.