Indigo chaos. As the title dictates, is not quite enough to justify the magnitude of disorder i experienced with Indigo airlines today,all day.
It all started with a rainy morning. My flight was scheduled at 12:20 and as per the norms i reached the airport an hour early as i was traveling on my wife's staff travel facility. A facility which i really appreciate the company provides for its employees. ( I pay like 600 bucks when others are paying like 5 -10k. ) With my wife's friends working at Bagdogra airport, its always a breeze to manage a staff seat every time i travel. So after purchasing my tickets i bid adieu to them and i checked in. I notice that there is an unusual crowd near the two gates Bagdogra airport has. After watching the commotion i realize that our flights are delayed by 35 minutes. But as we are all familiar of the Indian crowd, people still want to create a fuss and everyone is standing there awaiting the delayed flight in spite of having to stand there for 35 minutes more. I found a comfortable spot back in the corner and sat there reading my mails in my laptop. As time passed by we keep hearing about flights from other airlines getting delayed and some even canceled ( spice was the first one, it may sound pathetic service of spice airlines as of now.. But hang on.. Wait till i later reveal what happens to un-cancelled flights). So in between the announcements of bad weather and flight cancellations we hear the confident announcement of indigo that flight has been diverted and is delayed and will start boarding only at 3:55. Holy smokes.. that is almost 4 in the evening. But Indigo has their proud standard of never canceling flights, no matter what natural disaster strikes mother earth. So anyway that was it, flight is delayed and one could only hear the deep mumbling and grumbling of angry and frustrated passengers. As time passed the weather was not getting better, the crowd of people inside that small airport was suffocating. In between those crowd i see the different airlines staffs scooting around with their walky talkies appearing busier that the worker bees. It was a pandemonium of disorganized and confused travelers. After a while we hear another welcome announcement from indigo airlines that they are providing us free refreshments. Well i must say that was very nice of them so we all were scrambling over the pile of people asking for our free food. If one is curious about the contents of snacks in the paper food box, then one would have found a mini pack cashew, lays, good day biscuit two sticks of munch chocolate and one frooti. I must admit that was quite generous of indigo compared to the mini bottle of juice vistara airlines were providing their passengers. I finished checking my mails, finished eating the snacks and it was only after i reached 20 minutes of watching a movie in my cell phone that i heard the welcome announcement of our flight finally making it to the landing strip. So we all board the plane and i was calculating the time i would reach Bangalore. My approximation was around 8 to 9 in the evening. Flight took off despite the bad weather and within minutes we were over the clouds looking at the setting sun far over the horizon.
5:15 p.m. It took 45 minutes to reach Kolkata and after landing passengers started to get off the plane. The flight 6E 958 which we came in actually was supposed to go till Bangalore, without us having to deplane it. But now because it was too late and there was only 10-11 of us left in the plane an announcement was made that we were to get off this plane and board another connecting flight to Bangalore. Now to unsuspecting passengers this might have sounded a fair enough protocol because of our number, but i very well knew that the load from Kolkata to Bangalore was almost full i last checked online. Also considering the rush during this festive season i had booked my seats for all flights from Kolkata to Bangalore a month back. However i very well knew that if the load of 180 passengers were occupied then i had no chance except for the single push back Seat allocated for the air hostesses. This might refer to what we call "jhunday ra jannu" in nepali which literally means hanging behind the syndicate jeep which local people in our hometown often travel around. So our small group of confused people were courteously Deplaned and were taken inside Kolkata airport. Inside we were lost. The announcement inside the plane has so sweetly explained that we would be greeted by Indigo staff who would take us to the next plane. Instead we found ourselves wandering across the floor searching for indigo staffs. I finally spotted one and she directed me to go to the counter far across the huge floor. After reaching the counter the first thing i noticed was a very worried yet smiling Mr. Pritam, the so called customer relationship manager of Indigo for Kolkata base. He was handling a few passengers who had been Deplaned along with me. One passenger was threatening him by explaining him his past disappointing experience with Indigo, the other was asking him to give his family tickets immediately while the other was waiting to pounce upon him after the first two were finished with him. So in the midst of these arguments i being a passenger traveling as a staff laid down my ticket in front of him and asked for my accommodation for my next flight to Bangalore. Mr Pritam look at my ticket and at me and said right across my face, "sir, i cannot help you, i already have passengers and you being a staff try to find a way on your own" . Now one can consider it ignorance or sheer stupidity on Mr. Pritams part but he being a manager should have known that passengers travelling via staff seat also includes family members who have no idea about airport rules. Had it been some old parent who would have been traveling alone he/she would have had a minor heart attack. Anyway by the time i recovered from his reply another lady who was also a staff traveling with us had reached us and was also recovering from Mr Pritams reply . I felt bad for a family who was traveling with wife and two small kids. They needed 4 seats and i very well knew they had no chance of travel that night. The father was obviously shouting at the manager who looked more like a frightened deer by now. And then the inevitable happened. The manager excused us all and left stating he will come back in 5 minutes. So we all had our problems and the worst condition was ours, the actual staff travelers, the people whose family worked for Indigo. It was sad to see how these indigo Kolkata based staff treated us. We were the least important ones. My queries were suppressed from other queries from the so called actual passengers. My words never made past, Is there any chance.. When can i.. But i have paid.. Etc..
6:00 p.m. Seeing it was useless to talk out there, me and my new found Indigo related traveler, we decided to try luck upstairs at the main booking counter. She had luggage and it was another problem because Mr Pritam had already told a few passengers that the luggage would reach Bangalore somehow, while the staff were now saying the luggage will come in belt 3. A few bags started rolling out as they were discussing. She collected her bags and we headed upstairs. On the way one lady who was one of the stranded passenger shouted and asked if we got our boarding passes. We shook our heads not understanding why she was asking about that. Upstairs near the entrance we saw that lady's husband looking at us and telling the police guard "there they come and they have the same problem". The problem was in order to go inside we needed boarding pass and since we were "dropped off", we only had our tickets which did not suffice as a valid authorization to go inside. So now we could not even go inside to ask at the counter. We were screwed totally. My fellow staff traveler however was able to get inside because she had the company badge. I was left out. I did not know what to do or whom to ask. The other passengers had a chance because they were being attended even though they had a slim chance. But for me, i neither had the pass nor the Mr Pritam manager to help me. The restless husband upon hearing that the luggage were being belted out was further anxious as his wife and kid had gone to find out about boarding passes. After a couple of phone calls the wife came back bursting out in rage and saying she found their luggage stacked in one corner with no one looking after it. She was hyperventilating and taking medicines by now asking if anyone had some managers number so she could quote, "left and right these hopeless people", while the husband was talking about writing a letter directly to Mr. Ghosh, the CEO of Indigo. So in between these outbursts walks in my fellow staff traveler along with the Mr Pritam and another staff Joseph carrying a printout of the boarding passes for these people which had the scheduled departure time of 9:25. Now i realized my chance of going at 9:25 to be over because now three seats are taken. So i again ask Mr Pritam to help us out to which he again says he can't help at all. I asked if 8:05 counter was closed and he said it was with a sense of relief. I wondered if he really understood that one of the basic roles of a manager is to manage stuffs like these. Joseph finally spoke calmly and gave me a suggestion. Go downstairs go to G3, get the booking xerox copy go upstairs from that block and walk back to the counter. So i went alone and walked all the way to that section and finally reached the counter. There was quite a rush there already, so i stood in front of one of the counters looking more or less like a beggar, asking if anyone would pay attention.
7:30p.m. At the counter i could not find my fellow traveler and was in no condition to look further. Suddenly out of the blue Joseph asks me if i have already booked the 8:05 flight. That i had done a month back. So come to think of it, it was a possibility that one passenger had not arrived and since counter was closed they had one empty seat. I quickly paid for that flight and got the ticket. I snatched that ticket and rushed right through the crowd towards the gate 19. I finally sat on the 8:05 flight relieved and yet guilty as i had left the other ignored staff traveler without help , somewhere in that big Indigo chaos....
It all started with a rainy morning. My flight was scheduled at 12:20 and as per the norms i reached the airport an hour early as i was traveling on my wife's staff travel facility. A facility which i really appreciate the company provides for its employees. ( I pay like 600 bucks when others are paying like 5 -10k. ) With my wife's friends working at Bagdogra airport, its always a breeze to manage a staff seat every time i travel. So after purchasing my tickets i bid adieu to them and i checked in. I notice that there is an unusual crowd near the two gates Bagdogra airport has. After watching the commotion i realize that our flights are delayed by 35 minutes. But as we are all familiar of the Indian crowd, people still want to create a fuss and everyone is standing there awaiting the delayed flight in spite of having to stand there for 35 minutes more. I found a comfortable spot back in the corner and sat there reading my mails in my laptop. As time passed by we keep hearing about flights from other airlines getting delayed and some even canceled ( spice was the first one, it may sound pathetic service of spice airlines as of now.. But hang on.. Wait till i later reveal what happens to un-cancelled flights). So in between the announcements of bad weather and flight cancellations we hear the confident announcement of indigo that flight has been diverted and is delayed and will start boarding only at 3:55. Holy smokes.. that is almost 4 in the evening. But Indigo has their proud standard of never canceling flights, no matter what natural disaster strikes mother earth. So anyway that was it, flight is delayed and one could only hear the deep mumbling and grumbling of angry and frustrated passengers. As time passed the weather was not getting better, the crowd of people inside that small airport was suffocating. In between those crowd i see the different airlines staffs scooting around with their walky talkies appearing busier that the worker bees. It was a pandemonium of disorganized and confused travelers. After a while we hear another welcome announcement from indigo airlines that they are providing us free refreshments. Well i must say that was very nice of them so we all were scrambling over the pile of people asking for our free food. If one is curious about the contents of snacks in the paper food box, then one would have found a mini pack cashew, lays, good day biscuit two sticks of munch chocolate and one frooti. I must admit that was quite generous of indigo compared to the mini bottle of juice vistara airlines were providing their passengers. I finished checking my mails, finished eating the snacks and it was only after i reached 20 minutes of watching a movie in my cell phone that i heard the welcome announcement of our flight finally making it to the landing strip. So we all board the plane and i was calculating the time i would reach Bangalore. My approximation was around 8 to 9 in the evening. Flight took off despite the bad weather and within minutes we were over the clouds looking at the setting sun far over the horizon.
5:15 p.m. It took 45 minutes to reach Kolkata and after landing passengers started to get off the plane. The flight 6E 958 which we came in actually was supposed to go till Bangalore, without us having to deplane it. But now because it was too late and there was only 10-11 of us left in the plane an announcement was made that we were to get off this plane and board another connecting flight to Bangalore. Now to unsuspecting passengers this might have sounded a fair enough protocol because of our number, but i very well knew that the load from Kolkata to Bangalore was almost full i last checked online. Also considering the rush during this festive season i had booked my seats for all flights from Kolkata to Bangalore a month back. However i very well knew that if the load of 180 passengers were occupied then i had no chance except for the single push back Seat allocated for the air hostesses. This might refer to what we call "jhunday ra jannu" in nepali which literally means hanging behind the syndicate jeep which local people in our hometown often travel around. So our small group of confused people were courteously Deplaned and were taken inside Kolkata airport. Inside we were lost. The announcement inside the plane has so sweetly explained that we would be greeted by Indigo staff who would take us to the next plane. Instead we found ourselves wandering across the floor searching for indigo staffs. I finally spotted one and she directed me to go to the counter far across the huge floor. After reaching the counter the first thing i noticed was a very worried yet smiling Mr. Pritam, the so called customer relationship manager of Indigo for Kolkata base. He was handling a few passengers who had been Deplaned along with me. One passenger was threatening him by explaining him his past disappointing experience with Indigo, the other was asking him to give his family tickets immediately while the other was waiting to pounce upon him after the first two were finished with him. So in the midst of these arguments i being a passenger traveling as a staff laid down my ticket in front of him and asked for my accommodation for my next flight to Bangalore. Mr Pritam look at my ticket and at me and said right across my face, "sir, i cannot help you, i already have passengers and you being a staff try to find a way on your own" . Now one can consider it ignorance or sheer stupidity on Mr. Pritams part but he being a manager should have known that passengers travelling via staff seat also includes family members who have no idea about airport rules. Had it been some old parent who would have been traveling alone he/she would have had a minor heart attack. Anyway by the time i recovered from his reply another lady who was also a staff traveling with us had reached us and was also recovering from Mr Pritams reply . I felt bad for a family who was traveling with wife and two small kids. They needed 4 seats and i very well knew they had no chance of travel that night. The father was obviously shouting at the manager who looked more like a frightened deer by now. And then the inevitable happened. The manager excused us all and left stating he will come back in 5 minutes. So we all had our problems and the worst condition was ours, the actual staff travelers, the people whose family worked for Indigo. It was sad to see how these indigo Kolkata based staff treated us. We were the least important ones. My queries were suppressed from other queries from the so called actual passengers. My words never made past, Is there any chance.. When can i.. But i have paid.. Etc..
6:00 p.m. Seeing it was useless to talk out there, me and my new found Indigo related traveler, we decided to try luck upstairs at the main booking counter. She had luggage and it was another problem because Mr Pritam had already told a few passengers that the luggage would reach Bangalore somehow, while the staff were now saying the luggage will come in belt 3. A few bags started rolling out as they were discussing. She collected her bags and we headed upstairs. On the way one lady who was one of the stranded passenger shouted and asked if we got our boarding passes. We shook our heads not understanding why she was asking about that. Upstairs near the entrance we saw that lady's husband looking at us and telling the police guard "there they come and they have the same problem". The problem was in order to go inside we needed boarding pass and since we were "dropped off", we only had our tickets which did not suffice as a valid authorization to go inside. So now we could not even go inside to ask at the counter. We were screwed totally. My fellow staff traveler however was able to get inside because she had the company badge. I was left out. I did not know what to do or whom to ask. The other passengers had a chance because they were being attended even though they had a slim chance. But for me, i neither had the pass nor the Mr Pritam manager to help me. The restless husband upon hearing that the luggage were being belted out was further anxious as his wife and kid had gone to find out about boarding passes. After a couple of phone calls the wife came back bursting out in rage and saying she found their luggage stacked in one corner with no one looking after it. She was hyperventilating and taking medicines by now asking if anyone had some managers number so she could quote, "left and right these hopeless people", while the husband was talking about writing a letter directly to Mr. Ghosh, the CEO of Indigo. So in between these outbursts walks in my fellow staff traveler along with the Mr Pritam and another staff Joseph carrying a printout of the boarding passes for these people which had the scheduled departure time of 9:25. Now i realized my chance of going at 9:25 to be over because now three seats are taken. So i again ask Mr Pritam to help us out to which he again says he can't help at all. I asked if 8:05 counter was closed and he said it was with a sense of relief. I wondered if he really understood that one of the basic roles of a manager is to manage stuffs like these. Joseph finally spoke calmly and gave me a suggestion. Go downstairs go to G3, get the booking xerox copy go upstairs from that block and walk back to the counter. So i went alone and walked all the way to that section and finally reached the counter. There was quite a rush there already, so i stood in front of one of the counters looking more or less like a beggar, asking if anyone would pay attention.
7:30p.m. At the counter i could not find my fellow traveler and was in no condition to look further. Suddenly out of the blue Joseph asks me if i have already booked the 8:05 flight. That i had done a month back. So come to think of it, it was a possibility that one passenger had not arrived and since counter was closed they had one empty seat. I quickly paid for that flight and got the ticket. I snatched that ticket and rushed right through the crowd towards the gate 19. I finally sat on the 8:05 flight relieved and yet guilty as i had left the other ignored staff traveler without help , somewhere in that big Indigo chaos....
