New Delhi, February 22, 2025 – Union Agriculture Minister and senior BJP leader, Shivraj Singh Chouhan openly criticized Air India for displacing him into a broken seat on one of its flights. Shutting the airline in another round of discussions over service quality and satisfaction level of the passengers.
On February 22, 2025, Saturday, Chouhan boarded Air India flight AI436 from Bhopal to Delhi. The flight staff allotted him seat number 8C, which was “broken and sunken,” making it uncomfortable for seating. Displeased, Chouhan took to the social media platform X(let former Twitter) to narrate the entire incident.
Chouhan narrates
In his post, Chouhan elaborated on his itinerary: the inauguration of Kisan Mela in Pusa, the natural farming mission meeting in Kurukshetra, and meeting representatives of a farmers’ organization in Chandigarh. On the issue of seating, he stated: “Had made a booking on ticket of Air India flight number AI436, where I was allotted seat number 8C. I went and sat on the seat; the seat was broken and sunken in. It was uncomfortable to sit.”
One of the staff members informed him that management had earlier been made aware of the defective seat, and tickets for such seats ought not sell. He further added that many other seats on the plane were in the same condition of disrepair.
Chouhan’s co-passengers offered to swap seats with him, but he decided against it, saying he wouldn’t want to disturb anyone. He said: “My co-passengers requested me to change my seat and sit on a better seat, but why should I trouble another friend for my sake? I decided that I would complete my journey by sitting on this same seat.”
As air travel has taken a plunge in service quality, this incidence has ignited renewed discussions about the integrity of the service under Air India and Tata Group’s acquisition of services of Air India in 2022. In the past, it has been reported that there were things such as old interiors of aircraft, broken or malfunctioning entertainment systems, and problems with overall maintenance.
In April 2024, another incident on an Air India flight from Delhi to Bengaluru saw a passenger being assigned a broken window seat despite paying extra for seat selection. The passenger raised the issue on his social media account, posting images of the defective seat while he expressed his dissatisfaction with Air India’s response.
To turn the corner in service quality, Air India has adopted an all-inclusive modernization strategy. The two manufacturers–Boeing and Airbus–received an order of 470 modern airplanes in 2023 that is aimed at refitting and improving the quality of passenger experience.
There are incoming aircraft, for example, the Airbus A350-900. These new jets come with the latest features: suite-style seats in business-class complete with sliding doors, a completely upgraded system of in-flight entertainment, with a renovated interior cabin as well.
Still, a lot of issues plague the transition. Constraints on the supply chain have delayed refurbishing the remaining fleet and introducing new aircraft into service. Campbell Wilson, Air India’s CEO, shared the cause of these troubles and ensured the passengers that Air India intends to address these hurdles and work towards improved quality of service.
The experiences shared by Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan speak to the undeniable need for the airline to hasten its modernization and service quality efforts. Under the Tata treatment, the airline must ensure comfort and safety as paramount considerations for passengers while it transforms itself.
Such incidents, however, continuously demonstrate the need for proactive maintenance, timely communication from the cabin crew along with sustained commitment, all with a view to improving the passenger experience.
