A small episode inside our national carrier, Air India (AI). I will not be much critical as after all it is our national carrier, but still a bit of introduction before coming to the incident. AI is always treated as the last option amongst all the fellow Indian colleagues I have come across while working outside the country.

My earlier foreign trips were with Thai, Singapore & Garuda Indonesia (national carrier of Indonesia). This trip to Saudi was my first trip by AI. It was from New Delhi to Damam (Saudi Arabia) by AI 891 on 7th Jan. Apart from the 3 hours delay in departure (2 hours sitting inside the aircraft after boarding and hearing the announcement of pilot that it was no fault of theirs, it was only the fault of Airport authority!!!), there was something more interesting which compelled me to write this piece. After flying for about 2 hours (total journey was 4 ½ hours), we were served tea/coffee. We were four in a group of Indians coming from Delhi to join the same company. 10-15 minutes after finishing my coffee and while chatting with my ‘would-be’ colleagues, I was in mood of having some tea. I pressed the bell for air hostess. No one turned up after 2/3 re-calls (Surprise no. 1). Incidentally one steward peeped from Business class. I called for his attention and said I needed tea. He said that he can’t help in this matter as he was assigned in business class (surprise no. 2) and I have to locate the one for economy class (surprise no. 3!! ever heard of locating an air hostess?).

After looking here and there for the much ‘sought after’ air hostess of economy class, I could locate one. I called for her attention by waving my hand (like you call the conductors in public buses). When the lady (rather auntie) came, I put my request for tea. She said, “did you not have one just now?” (Surprise no. 4!!!). I was totally embarrassed and felt like a cheap passenger, who is only after getting free teas. I told her that I did have one, but like to have some more. She again replied that she had finished serving and have washed all the utensils (Bomb surprise). I was so humiliated that I withdrew my request and told her to ignore it. My colleagues were watching the episode dumbfounded. Her reply was something like of a road side hotel owner, saying all the meals are finished and all utensils are washed.

After 5 minutes I did get a tea, and it was indeed valuable for me as it was obtained after crossing so many hurdles. My colleagues cut a good joke on the entire episode. They said, like all airlines advertise for hospitality, passenger friendly crew etc. etc.; this airlines can advertise for ‘motherly natured’ crew. As it is all the staffs are old ladies and they are reluctant to serve tea as the mother is to say in our childhood that tea spoils the stomach! Where else do you find such motherly care? The joke was indeed a shame for us, but probably it was the best way to lighten the odd situation faced just then.

Had it been any other airlines I would have lodged a complaint on deplaning. But with certain things in India, change is absolutely impossible. What is the point in lodging a complaint with an international airline which announces that the delay in departure is due to fault of airport authority and not their fault? Why can’t the pilot realize that a traveler of foreign origin has got nothing to do with the two departments? Similarly, when someone can say that he is attending the business class and not bothered about requests of economy class passengers, you can conclude they are not bothered about complaints too! It will continue to live with the image of ‘an airline from a 3rd world country’.

Long live ‘Mother India Air’.

Siddhartho Mukherjee

Yanbu, Saudi Arabia

Traveled by AI 891 on 7th January 2005.