MUMBAI: A woman passenger allegedly assaulted a female staff member of Air India Express at Mumbai airport on Sunday. The passenger was subsequently handed over to the police.
“On 1st September, a passenger at Mumbai airport misbehaved with a staff member of our ground operations partner. The Duty Manager promptly notified CISF, and the passenger was handed over to the police in accordance with Standard Operating Procedures,” an Air India Express spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday.
The airline emphasized its zero-tolerance policy towards any behavior that endangers the safety and well-being of passengers and staff.
Reacting to the incident, the airline said, “Air India Express reiterates its zero-tolerance approach to any behavior that jeopardizes the safety and well-being of our guests and employees, and those of our partners”.
According to DGCA guidelines, “unruly passenger behaviour includes but is not limited to, consuming alcohol or drugs resulting in disruptive behaviour, smoking, not obeying pilot instructions, using threatening or abusive language, physically threatening or abusive behaviour, intentional interference with crew duties, and endangering aircraft safety”.
Physically abusive behavior—such as pushing, kicking, hitting, inappropriate touching, or sexual harassment—is categorized as a Level 2 offense. In such cases, a First Information Report (FIR) is filed with the relevant security agency, and the disruptive passenger is handed over to them.
The airline may impose an immediate ban of up to 30 days on the individual and notify the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to add the person to the No-Fly List maintained by the regulator. Other airlines can also impose bans on the passenger, depending on the severity of the offense.
