Bhubaneswar: A woman passenger allegedly created a ruckus at the Biju Patnaik International Airport here after her flight to Kolkata was cancelled, shouting at airline staff, climbing onto a conveyor belt and allegedly damaging airport property, officials said on Friday.
An FIR has been registered against the woman for allegedly damaging public property and misbehaving with airline staff at the airport counter, police said.
Videos purportedly showing the woman shouting at airline personnel went viral on social media. According to passengers, she was distressed as she reportedly had a sick child waiting at home in Kolkata.
The Bhubaneswar-Kolkata flight, scheduled to depart at 2.35 pm on Thursday, was delayed and subsequently cancelled at around 5.30 pm due to a technical issue, a senior airport official said.
Following the cancellation, the passenger allegedly became agitated and confronted the airline staff. She reportedly climbed onto a conveyor belt and threw objects, besides allegedly causing damage to airport property.
CISF personnel intervened and brought the situation under control, the official said.
The airline subsequently arranged refreshments for the affected passengers and provided flight coupons worth Rs 5,000 as compensation, he said. The woman later travelled to Kolkata on a connecting flight via New Delhi.
“We have registered an FIR and an investigation is underway,” said Rabindranath Meher, IIC of Airport police station.
The airline concerned had not issued any statement on the incident till the filing of this report.
