Passenger bodyslammed to the ground by airline staff at airport
An airline’s ground staff have been filmed manhandling a passenger after an argument quickly spiralled into a brawl on an airport's tarmac.
Rajeev Katiyal had just landed at New Delhi airport when he was was physically prevented from boarding a coach on the tarmac by an airline staffer.
The passenger reportedly became agitated by the lengthy delay in returning to the terminal.
The actions of staff members in the alarming incident at the airport is part of a major airline and government investigation.
IndiGo have taken full responsibility for the incident after vision emerged showing two staff members pinning a passenger down on the ground after an argument on the tarmac.
In a seven-page report addressed to India's civil aviation minister, IndiGo used multiple screenshots from the video to explain the reasons behind the incident and what transpired between the passenger and its employees.
"We find this incident extremely regrettable and wish that we would have handled this differently," IndiGo President Aditya Ghosh said in the letter, adding that while the investigation was going on the employees involved were immediately suspended.
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"Whatever may have been the provocation, whether verbal or physical abuse, we could have tried to display more restraint," Ghosh said while defending some of the actions of his employees which he says were taken to ensure the passenger's safety.
Terming the incident as "unacceptable", India's junior minister of aviation said on Tuesday that the government would decide what action to take once IndiGo submits a report.
The airline said they had apologised to the passenger on the day of the incident.
"What transpired was something that is not in accordance with the laid down procedures and resulted in an incident which is a departure from IndiGo's ethos," Ghosh said in the report,
The incident comes a little more than six months after United Airlines made headlines around the world after they violently dragged a passenger from the plane who refused to give up his seat.
After the incident US lawmakers threatened United and other carriers with legislation aimed at improving customer service.
