Reacting to the incident where Air India’s A1-126 Boeing 777-337 flight was forced to return to Chicago, the airline company on March 10 issued a statement saying that they found polythene bags, clothes and rags which had clogged its toilets, forcing the aircraft to return to its origin.
The flight which was bound for New Delhi from Chicago was forced to turn-back midair after eight of the 12 washrooms became unusable, leading to anger among the passengers.
As per reports, on March 5, the flight was somewhere above Europe, when the eight washrooms became dysfunctional, making the situation untenable for the 300 passengers aboard the aircraft. Videos from the flight showing chaos on board began surfacing on social media soon after the plane was forced to return to Chicago ten hours after it had left.
According to Hindustan Times, one person on the flight allegedly said that the crew had not even announced the plane’s U-turn and that passengers had realised that they were heading back to Chicago only by looking at the plane’s route on the in-flight screens provided for entertainment.
In their statement, Air India said, “We would like to confirm that as part of our investigation into the incident, our teams found polythene bags, rags, and clothes that had been flushed down and stuck in the plumbing. This led the lavatories to become unserviceable.”
Adding that while they “fully empathise with passengers”, the statement says, “About an hour and forty-five minutes into the flight, the crew reported some of the lavatories in business and economy classes to be unserviceable. Subsequently, eight of the 12 lavatories in the aircraft became unserviceable, causing discomfort to all on board”
By this time, the aircraft was flying over the Atlantic Ocean, leaving the option of diverting the flight to cities in Europe. However, this was not possible due to restrictions on night operations at most of the European airports, according to the statement, due to which the plane went back to Chicago. Passengers were provided hotel accommodations and alternative flight options after landing in Chicago, the statement reads.
“While not found on AI126 of 5 March 2025, our teams have previously also found objects such as blankets, innerwear, and diapers, among other waste, having been flushed down the toilets on other flights. We take this opportunity to urge passengers to use lavatories only for the purposes that they are meant for,” the statement further says.