Regular flight cancelled for Team India! Aviation body seeks report

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has sought a report from Air India over allegations that an aircraft, scheduled to operate from New York to Delhi, was diverted to Barbados to bring the Indian cricket team back to India, a news agence reported.

The move reportedly caused inconvenience to passengers booked on the scheduled flight. Some passengers claimed on social media that no substitute flight was provided.

On July 2, Air India cancelled the Delhi-bound flight from New York and deployed the aircraft to bring back the Rohit Sharma-led T20 World Cup winning team from Barbados.

A senior official stated on Wednesday that the DGCA had sought a detailed report from Air India regarding the incident. "Air India managed to send a flight on a charter basis in close coordination with the BCCI officials to bring the players home. Fortunately, this aircraft could be made available after accommodating the passengers due to fly from New York to Delhi on another Air India flight," told DGCA sources.

An Air India official also claimed that most passengers were informed in advance about the flight cancellation and were either placed on another flight or transported by road to New York. The passengers were then accommodated on a flight from New York to Delhi.

DGCA rules issued in 2017 mandate that airlines operating non-scheduled international flights must not disrupt scheduled operations, implying the need for spare aircraft for charters. "For the operation of charter flights by scheduled operators, there shall be no disruption to their scheduled flights," the rules state.

The special charter flight, which had a call sign AIC24WC -- Air India Champions 24 World Cup, departed around 4:50 am (local time) from Barbados and landed in New Delhi on Thursday at 7 am.

The departure of the cricket team was delayed due to Hurricane Beryl, necessitating the arrangement of the chartered flight by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).