Air India Flights Disrupted at Mumbai Airport After Ground Staff Protest

Operations of Air India and Air India Express were disrupted at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport on Monday after employees of government-owned ground handling company AI Airport Services Limited (AIASL) staged a temporary protest demanding wage revisions and improvements in working conditions.

The disruption led to delays in at least 15 departing flights from Mumbai, with several services running behind schedule by 90 minutes to nearly two hours. Arriving passengers also experienced inconvenience, with some flights remaining stationed on the tarmac for extended periods due to the shortage of ground handling staff.

One of the affected flights was an Air India service from Hyderabad to Mumbai that landed around 11.45 a.m. Passengers onboard said they were unable to exit the aircraft for nearly an hour after landing because ground staff were unavailable to complete arrival procedures.

Sujit Dilip, a Pune-based circus owner travelling to Mumbai for a business meeting, said passengers were left confused due to a lack of communication. “We landed at 11.45 am and remained inside the aircraft till around 1 pm. Even after disembarking, there was confusion regarding baggage collection. I finally received my luggage around 2 pm and missed my meeting,” he said.

Another affected service was Air India flight AI 431 from Mumbai to Dehradun, originally scheduled to depart at 12.10 p.m. Passengers alleged they were left waiting at the boarding gate for hours without any clear update regarding departure timing.

“We have been sitting at the boarding gate since 11 am. The boarding time printed on our pass was 11.10 am, but we were still waiting well past 3 pm,” said 80-year-old passenger Gajendra Verma, a retired government employee.

AIASL handles ground operations for Air India Group carriers and several international airlines across Indian airports. Ground handling services include baggage loading, aircraft cleaning, passenger boarding assistance and aircraft turnaround operations, making the workforce critical for airport functioning.

Following the disruption, Air India issued a statement acknowledging the operational impact caused by the industrial action. The airline said airport teams were coordinating with stakeholders to restore normal services and minimise inconvenience to passengers.

“Industrial action by employees of a third-party ground handling agency at Mumbai airport is impacting the operations of Air India Express and Air India. Our airport teams are working closely with all stakeholders to minimise inconvenience to guests and restore normal operations at the earliest,” the airline said.

Later in the day, AIASL confirmed that employees had resumed duties after management assured them that their demands would be reviewed.

AIASL CEO Rambabu said the protest involved a section of employees who submitted their concerns formally to the management. “There was a silent morcha by a certain section of employees. We requested them to provide their demands in writing for discussion. They have now resumed work,” he said.

He added that the management would examine the submitted demands in line with company policy.

The brief protest once again highlighted the operational vulnerabilities at major Indian airports, where even temporary disruptions in ground handling services can lead to cascading delays, passenger inconvenience and logistical bottlenecks during peak travel hours.