Passenger Care Or PR Stunt? Delayed Response To Woman's Traumatic Experience With Air India Raises Uproar

It's not going to be an easy way out for Air India to repair their image after the 'Pee-Gate' incident. The airlines, which was recently sold to the Tata Group, have been looking into ways to revamp its reputation. However, with the incident of a drunk passenger peeing on a woman passenger coming to light, the airlines have been caught in turmoil.

Air India's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Campbell Wilson came out with a response to the incident almost three months later and tried to douse the fire. However, it was rather late by then, as the netizens had picked it up and turned it into a trending debate. From #AirIndiaHorror to #PeeGate, the public uproar outweighed the namesake explanation offered months after the reported incident. As the incident has now become a PR nightmare for the airlines, here are a few things they could've avoided to ensure their passengers were not left traumatised after the journey.

Can we call out #AirIndia for its role in the whole #PeeGate fiasco?
Reports say Pilot made victim wait for hours before allocating new seat
Crew tried to pacify situation, made her negotiate with #ShankarMishra
Keen to know the role of airline in this whole #UrinationIncident pic.twitter.com/amPVbHT7AQ

— Arjit Garg (@Arjit_Garg) January 7, 2023

The 'Pee-Gate' Incident

The incident, which reportedly occurred on November 26, was brought to light in January due to social media outrage. A Mumbai businessman identified as Shankar Mishra had urinated on a woman in the business class of Air India's New York-Delhi flight after being inebriated. According to media reports, the woman had then approached the crew to complain about the traumatic incident, but it was dealt with in a "deeply unprofessional" manner. According to a report by the Business Today, she informed them that her clothes, shoes, and bag were soaked in urine, and the staff chose to spray them with some disinfectant. She was then taken to the washroom and offered a set of pyjamas and socks from the airline.

After the incident, the woman requested a different seat but was denied the same. Even though passengers pointed out that seats were vacant, the crew conveyed that the pilot had vetoed the decision. She was then offered the steward's seat for the rest of the journey. Later during the journey, the flight staff informed the woman that the offender wanted to apologise to her. Even after expressing that she would not like to interact with the man and wanted him to be arrested on arrival, the crew brought him to the woman against her request.

Much to her surprise, the crew made them sit opposite to each other in the crew seats while he went profusely crying and apologising for the act. He begged her against lodging a complaint with the reasoning that he is a "family man" and did not wish his wife and child to be affected by the incident. None of the apologies, however, compensated for the woman's distraught state, and she chose not to negotiate with the perpetrator. A day after the incident, the woman sent a complaint to Air India, and the airline decided to reimburse the ticket in return.

A Reworked Alcohol Policy Adequate For The Trauma Faced?

After the airline faced severe backlash, CEO Campbell Wilson released a statement on January 7 saying that the airline could have handled the issue better. This, however, had no explanation given as to why the airlines chose to keep the incident under cover and not call the police over the same. He instead apologised for the unfortunate incident and said the four cabin crew and a pilot had been de-rostered after the incident.

#FlyAI: Statement from Air India CEO pic.twitter.com/xCkPSECJaa

— Air India (@airindiain) January 7, 2023

According to a report by The Economic Times, he also mentioned that the airline is reviewing the policy of serving alcohol on flights. Along with their attempt at damage control came guidelines issued by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) for the air crew to prevent such situations.

Wilson, in his statement, spoke on the same lines and promised a robust reporting system for such untoward incidents or unruly behaviour. Apart from this, the airline also confirmed that they're probing into aspects such as service of alcohol on the flight, incident handling, complaint registration on board, and grievance handling. The airlines and DGCA will also be looking into the use of restraining devices in handling unruly passengers after the 'pee-gate' cases.

Also Read: 'No Grey Hair, Balding Patches, Religious Rings': Air India's New Guidelines for Cabin Crew