A tragic crash of a Boeing Dreamliner bound for London, shortly after takeoff from Ahmedabad airport, claimed the lives of 260 people. As investigations continue — examining everything from cockpit errors to potential mental health lapses — a parallel crisis may be quietly unfolding at Air India: a steady erosion of customer trust.
For decades, the airline has enjoyed strong brand loyalty among the Indian diaspora in the United States. Conveniences such as direct routes from major cities, elderly-friendly crews, cultural familiarity, and language comfort have been key elements of its value proposition. Many Indian Americans rely on these features when choosing Air India for their elderly parents traveling the long route between India and the United States.
While this customer intimacy once created a reliable, almost default, customer base for transcontinental routes, recent years have seen a decline in satisfaction. Recurring issues — ranging from in-flight amenity failures to aging cabin interiors — have evolved from isolated complaints into a consistent pattern of service breakdowns. What was once considered a minor operational inconvenience is now shaping into a serious reputation management challenge.
In the last few years alone, social media has been abuzz with complaints about everything from malfunctioning food tray tables to defective remotes, non-functioning entertainment screens, and less-than-clean-looking seat covers. But in the recent past, some issues have gone beyond being dismissed as “small technical errors” and have damaged the level of service expected from an international airline, leaving people to question the brand equity of this 93-year-old carrier.
READ: More than 300 people suffer as choked toilets spell trouble on Delhi-Chicago nonstop flight (March 13, 2017)
In March of this year, Chicago resident Nikesh Thapaliya, who works with a non-profit, boarded flight AI 126 from Chicago to New Delhi. He says the ordeal began just 90 minutes into the flight. He recalls, “The toilets began clogging soon after takeoff, and ‘Do Not Use’ signs were posted,” adding, “A crew member admitted the system was already faulty and it wasn’t passenger misuse.” Thapaliya adds, “As hours passed, the situation worsened.”
“Five hours in, the captain announced we would be turning back to Chicago due to the malfunction. Two hours earlier, they had already suspended beverage service, though the attendants still tried to offer water and coffee to calm people down.” On that flight — where hundreds of passengers had barely any toilets to use — the long journey began to feel like a nightmare.
“By the end of the flight, just two toilets at the rear of the aircraft remained usable,” Thapaliya says. What frustrated him more, however, was the complete breakdown in communication after landing. “Once we were back in Chicago, no one told us what was happening. They handed out generic apology letters with phone numbers, but no one mentioned hotel arrangements. People were left confused and waiting.”
READ: Flying Air India? You may get a dead fly as a garnish in your aircraft meals (July 25, 2019)
It was only at baggage claim that passengers learned accommodations had been arranged. Thapaliya, determined not to absorb the cost of the ordeal, contacted Air India directly before rebooking and secured a full refund, which was processed within a week. His criticism of Air India remains clear.
“At first, they blamed an ‘undisclosed technical reason’ for the diversion. They even switched off the map display on the working screens,” he said. “I noticed broken tray tables too, which felt like a safety risk.” He adds, “One look at Air India and you can tell how poorly maintained things are — the seats, the entertainment system etc. You can only imagine the things that can’t be seen — how bad they may be. Honestly, I’m surprised Air India is still allowed to operate in U.S. airspace.”
Chicago physician Arish Ayub and his wife were on the same flight, midway to Delhi, when the pilot abruptly announced that the flight was returning to Chicago due to clogged lavatories. “The crew seemed as confused as we were,” Ayub recalled. “Passengers were frustrated, especially those like me who had connecting flights.”
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What followed, Ayub described as a logistical nightmare. Passengers received little communication and were handed photocopied apology letters with instructions to call customer service. Many elderly travelers were visibly distressed, some without phones, adding to the chaos. After waiting 40 minutes on a call with customer service, Ayub was rebooked for the next day, but others were stranded for several days or rerouted via New York or San Francisco.
At the airport, around 100 passengers waited nearly two hours in the cold for a single bus to a hotel, only to stand in line again for an hour to get rooms. “The entire experience was chaotic and exhausting,” he said. Adding to the distress, Ayub helped a fellow passenger who suffered a panic attack mid-flight while traveling alone with her child. “It was heartbreaking,” he said. “And it showed how unprepared Air India was for emergencies like this.”
More than 300 people suffer as choked toilets spell trouble on Delhi-Chicago nonstop flight (March 13, 2017 )
Just weeks after a Chicago-Delhi flight was forced to turn back due to clogged toilets, Air India faced another embarrassing mid-air diversion. Flight AI188 from Toronto to Delhi was rerouted to Frankfurt on May 2 after a plumbing malfunction left several onboard lavatories unusable. Though the plane resumed its journey after a brief stopover, the incident marked the second toilet-related diversion in as many months.
This latest mishap adds to a growing list of customer grievances dogging India’s national carrier.
Last year, Indian American CEO Anip Patel’s viral social media videos exposed broken seats, stained upholstery, and non-functional entertainment systems on a premium cabin flight from Delhi to Chicago, branding the experience as a “nightmare.” More recently, passenger Saumita Chatterjee, after enduring 16 hours in a broken business class seat, took to X to slam Air India’s deteriorating service standards, calling the airline a “pawnshop” and questioning how it’s still allowed to fly. His ₹242,000 ($2,900) ticket reportedly earned him just ₹5,000 ($60) in compensation.
With service breakdowns now translating into viral PR disasters, Air India’s brand reputation continues to nosedive. If not addressed through proactive service recovery and strategic customer experience management, the airline risks losing not just flyers, but also its positioning as India’s flagship brand in global aviation.