Despite it being clearly mentioned on their tickets, scores of Air India passengers who have booked their flights in some international-turning-domestic flight, land up at the domestic terminal, only to realise that they have to board their flight from the newly-constructed T2.
On Tuesday, 23 passengers missed their flight. Airport officials said that on an average, more than 10 passengers faced a similar problem.
According to airport sources, such goof-ups have been going on ever since the state-of-the-art Terminal 2 (T2) opened to public over two months ago. All international operations take place at T2. In addition to this, international flights connecting domestic destinations also start from there.
Normally, all domestic flights, including that of Air India, take off from the domestic terminal at Vile Parle. Hence, many passengers who are required to report at T2 end up there.
"They then rush to T2, which is near Sahar Road about 2-km away, by road. And many miss their flights in the process," said an airport insider, who claimed that some of these passengers would be accommodated in the next flight. But for many of them the nightmare doesn't end there as they may miss crucial meetings or appointments.
"It was a horrible experience last month for my friend, who had to rush from the domestic terminal at Vile Parle to the new terminal at the last movement," said Kapil Arora, a Malad-based BPO employee.
Meanwhile, an airline spokesperson clarified that in each air ticket the information about which airport to board a plane is clearly printed. "Most of the time passengers don't examine their tickets and assume that if their destination is domestic, then the flight is from 1A at Vile Parle, and end up at the wrong terminal," he added.
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