Passengers stuck as rain hits Kochi airport flight operations

Oman Wednesday 15/August/2018 21:26 PM
By: Times News Service
Passengers stuck as rain hits Kochi airport flight operations

Muscat: Passengers who wanted to fly from Muscat to Kochi found themselves in a difficult situation after the Kochi airport suspended operations until 2pm on Saturday.
The decision was taken after the airport was inundated with water due to heavy rains and floods in Kerala, airport authorities disclosed.
However, some airlines flying from Muscat to Kochi have offered passengers the option to fly to other destinations close to Kochi or get a full refund. Indian expatriates, who had air tickets to travel to Kochi from Wednesday to Saturday, may instead, fly to Trivandrum, Calicut, Mangalore or Coimbatore.
If they feel that the flood situation is too dangerous, they have also been given the option of a total refund.
Jet Airways country manager Wasim Zaidi said that their passengers had the option of flying to four alternative destinations, instead of Kochi.
Refund
“We operate a single flight to Kochi everyday. We have told our customers that they can fly to Trivandrum, Calicut, Mangalore or Coimbatore instead. If they feel that the circumstances are too dangerous to fly, then they can get a complete refund,” he said.
At least 474 Jet Airways passengers from four flights have been forced to make these choices.
The airline operates a solitary flight to Kochi at 11.30am and the Kochi airport is scheduled to resume operations at 2pm on Saturday. So, it is unclear as to what will happen, as dealing with the flooding of the facility will be difficult as water levels are set to rise with continued rains.
“We carry 158 people on each of our Kochi flights. I would advise our customers to take one of the options because it’s the best one can do right now,” Zaidi added.
Air India country manager Mahesh Choudhary revealed that they had given their passengers who wished to fly to Kochi the option to fly to two other cities in Kerala, instead.
“We have told our customers that they can fly to either Trivandrum or Calicut. They can also get a total refund, if they wish. We operate one flight to Kochi daily. The take-off time for this flight is 11.20am.
“We are still trying to arrange for a flight to Trivandrum on Wednesday, August 15, instead of the regular Kochi flight,” he said. At least 540 Air India passengers have been affected by this situation. “We carry 180 passengers per flight. So, all of them will have to choose one of the options available. We’ll see how the situation develops until Saturday,” Choudhary added.
Other airlines that fly from Muscat to Kochi are yet to disclose how they will deal with the situation.
Kerala has been hit with a heavy spell of rains, forcing the Idukki dam in the state to release water as it reached its maximum capacity. This has added to the flooding woes. Anywhere between 45 and 50 people have died in the floods, so far.