‘Life is Waiting’ — the tagline for the popular American film The Terminal popped up several times in my head during a nightmarish nine-hour stay at the Mumbai and Ahmedabad terminals following the record downpour on Tuesday.
Like the protagonist Viktor Navorski, who was stuck at New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport for nine months, I too slowly settled in at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, waiting to board a flight to Ahmedabad at 7.30 a.m., which kept being put off as incessant rain paralysed traffic on land and in the air.
The airline staff tried blaming the inclement weather — cross winds and tail winds — that had forced 54 flights to be diverted and another 52 to be cancelled. But as one hour turned to two, two to three and then four, everyone seemed to be losing their calm. Some let slip their true feelings towards ground staff, seemingly mismanaging the crisis or rather getting overwhelmed by the occasion. Many passengers lost their temper when told the airlines could not compensate them but could and only provide an alternative flight the next day.
“I have a competitive examination to appear for, please let me fly,” a boy wailed to a GoAir crew member, while his mother consoled him. Most felt helpless.
The coffee shops on the terminal spilt over with waiting passengers. Some of those waiting were huddled over the information boards. Just as a fellow passenger bailed on our flight, I heard a boarding call. A full three-hour delay.
“I just hope my parents are not watching news in France of what is happening here in Mumbai. They will panic,” a worried Virginie Provost, an employee of Nivea India, confided to me. At the security check-in, I was stopped with no mention of departure gate number on the pass. An argument broke out between central reserve forces and airline staff, who vehemently requested the clearance.
I finally boarded the flight at 10.30 a.m, only to be told it could not fly for another two hours. This wait was just endless. The aircraft finally hit the runway at 1.30 p.m., landing in Ahmedabad at 2.15 p.m., almost seven hours after the scheduled departure.
The ordeal was not over, though. More bad news trickled in as I landed. The return fight from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport the same evening had also been cancelled. I quickly got it rescheduled to 9.30 p.m. from the earlier 8.30 p.m.
It was déjà vu at the Ahmedabad airport, with the return flight now getting pushed to 12.30 a.m. The pilot said congestion at Mumbai was the cause.
When I finally landed at Mumbai at 4 a.m. on Wednesday, I heaved a sigh of relief. My nightmare had ended, unlike Viktor’s, who was holed up for a full nine months inside the airport.
