An airline is liable for negligence in causing great hardship, mental tension, and expenses to passengers due to flight delays and cancellations.

Mr. Justice S.A. Shah, President—The complainant is a practicing Chartered Accountant and is a frequent traveler by the Air Craft belonging to Indian Air Lines Corporation, Opposite Party herein. The complainant was the Vice-Chairman of WICAA of the Institute of the Chartered Accountants and sitting member of the said Institute at New Delhi since 1988 and Vice-Chairman of the Taxation Committee. He is also holding several other positions and on that account, according to the complainant, he had to undertake repeated travels for going to various places and, particularly on Ahmedabad-Delhi Section of the Indian Air Lines Corporation (opposite party for short). The opposite party is a monopoly concern for operating Air Lines throughout India and declaring the Flight Schedules and time table for outgoing and incoming flights at the places where it touches the Air Ports.

2. The complainant has alleged that from his repeated experience, he has learnt that the Opposite Party is not operating the Flights well in time and majority of flights are being delayed either because of the negligence of the staff, or on the ground of technical snag which leads to the inference that the Air Crafts which are being operated on Ahmedabad-Delhi Section, are defective one and the same are being run at the inconvenience and risk of the passengers.

3. The complainant has then averred that the Indian Air Lines Corporation is a commercial venture of the Government of India, having monopoly for the entire of India and has fallen to the prey of bureaucrats, resulting into carelessness and rack less management, paying no attention to the complaints of the travellers, whose valuable life is being put to jeopardy and danger. According to the complainant, as a usual phenomena, the complaints are welcome by the opposite party but no redressal to such complaints is found to the extent of showing courtesy even to acknowledge for the same.

4. After this complaint was filed, the complainant had some more occasions to travel by the Air-Craft of the opposite party and, therefore, he placed by way of amendment, some incidents on record instead of bringing a new complaint The amendment has been allowed by us to shorten the litigation. The complainant had narrated (7) seven incidents regarding the defective services of the opposite party, resulting into loss and damage on account of negligence on the part of the opposite party, we will refer to the incident date wise, which are as under:-

(i) On December 15, 1989, flight No. IC/864 was to take off at 16.45 hours from Ahmedabad; but the same was delayed by twelve hours. No information was available regarding the correct time of departure and the complainant had to wait for 8 to 9 hours and ultimately when the Air-Craft came at 11.00P.M., while taking off, the Tyre was found to have been deflated. The passengers were brought back from the Air-Craft to the Terminal and were informed by the authority that unless the tyre and the technical staff comes from Delhi, the flight would not take off. Thus, in the uncertain situation, the complainant had to get his ticket cancelled.

(ii) On February 1, 1990, on Ahmedabad-Delhi Morning Flight, there was a delay of 1-1/2 hours, but the reason for delay was starting, in as much as, after the doors were closed, the Captain could not start the Engine and ultimately 3-4 staff members were found running from the Terminal basement; doors were again opened, stair-case was placed. But in the meantime, the technical staff started making the engine running by working below the Air-Craft. It is the case of the complainant that it was a matter of surprise as to how the engine could not start at the last moment. Corollary thereof, according to the complainant, could be very clear that the opposite party does not have the method of routine checking before the nights take-off.

(iii) The most hopeless experience, the complainant had, is that on February 10, 1990, when he was travelling by Flight No