Bleeding passengers are filing police complaints against Jet Airways
Two days after negligence aboard a Jet Airways flight left at least 30 bleeding, it seems that the airlines is set for a legal battle. An activist has already lodged a police complaint alleging 'attempt to murder', while another passenger, still suffering from nosebleeds and ear pains, is contemplating lodging a police complaint against Jet Airways for negligence. Here are the details.
Mumbai activist alleges attempted murder following the incident
On Friday, Mumbai activist Asad Ashraf Patel, who also runs a local newspaper, lodged a four-page complaint at the Sahar Police Station. He accused the Jet Airways crew of 'dereliction of duty', and 'poor crisis management', alleging that it all amounted to 'attempted murder' of the 166 passengers on board. Patel has urged that the crew and the airlines be booked under relevant IPC sections.
What Patel had to say about his complaint
"After an hour of high-altitude flying, the flight had to make an emergency landing and about 30 passengers had blood (in ears and nose) and the rest were suffocating, putting the travelers in death-bed situation and condition," Patel told NDTV.
Ankur Kala had to be rushed to the hospital
On Thursday, Ankur Kala arrived in Mumbai from Hong Kong, where had participated in a jewellery exhibition. Kala took the ill-fated 6.15 am flight to Jaipur, and then catastrophe struck and left Kala with a severe nosebleed. The 38-year-old was one of the five passengers to be rushed to the Navanati hospital after the Jaipur-bound aircraft turned around and landed in Mumbai.
Ankur might require a CT scan, and MRI
"His [Ankur's] head and ears are paining constantly. We plan to make him undergo a CT scan and an MRI of brain...We now plan to register a police complaint against Jet Airways for negligence," said Vikram Kala, Ankur's brother.
Kala was one among several who suffered barotrauma on Thursday
Thursday's Jet Airways flight, 9W 687, from Mumbai to Jaipur, saw several passengers suffer nose bleeds, headaches, and ear pains after a glitch in the cabin pressure maintenance system. Subsequently, the crew forgot to put on the bleed switch to normalize cabin pressure. Consequently, those on board suffered from a condition called barotrauma, owing to differences in their ear pressure and outside air pressure.
Surgeon who treated patients says it'll take time to recover
"It will take a few days for the situation to normalise for the patients. There was immense pressure on their ear drums...This led to bleeding. But none of them are critical," said ENT surgeon Dr. Amol Patil, who treated the five in Navanati hospital.
Others might sue Jet Airways for negligence
Yet, Kala are Patel aren't the only ones contemplating legal action. On Thursday itself, Satish Nair, one of the flight's passengers, had raged on Twitter and had threatened to sue the airlines. Now, IE reports that he is waiting for the probe into the incident to turn in results. Nair had earlier pointed out Jet Airways' failure to provide assistance to injured passengers.
The incident has left the government and passengers concerned
Meanwhile, Thursday's harrowing incident left many concerned. Several people who have booked tickets with Jet Airways are contemplating cancelling their bookings in light of the incident. The government too, taking cognizance of the incident, has ordered a safety audit plan for the entire civil aviation industry, to be submitted to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) within 30 days.
A similar incident in 2005 had resulted in everyone dying
While Thursday's incident was the first-of-its-kind in Indian skies, previous such incidents had resulted in disaster. In August 2005, decompression aboard a Cyprus-Athens flight saw the crew immobilized. The plane flew on autopilot till fuel ran out, and then crashed, killing everyone on board.
