Wheelchair unavailable, 80-yr-old Air India passenger walks for 1km at Mumbai airport, dies of cardiac arrest

In a shocking incident, an 80-year-old man, who had arrived on an Air India flight from New York with his wife, died at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport. There was only one wheelchair available for the aged couple.

A senior citizen passenger, who had requested for wheelchair assistance on an Air India flight from New York to Mumbai, passed away after collapsing due to a heart attack.  The incident happened on February 12th as the traveler was going through immigration with his wheelchair-bound wife.

The couple had pre-booked wheelchairs but only the wife received one, as per media reports. The man was walking alongside his wife and as they reached the immigration counter, he collapsed due to a heart attack.

"Unfortunately, on February 12, 2024, one of our visitors traveling from New York to Mumbai became unwell while going through immigration with his wheelchair-using wife. We had asked the customer to wait until he was given wheelchair assistance due to the high demand for wheelchairs, but he chose to walk with his spouse instead. As advised by the airport doctor attending to him after taking ill, the passenger was immediately rushed to the hospital, where he was declared to have passed away'', Air India spokesperson said.

The deceased, identified as an Indian-origin US passport holder, was travelling in economy class on Air India flight AI-116 from New York to Mumbai.

The flight was supposed to land in Mumbai at 11:30am but was reportedly delayed and landed at 2:10pm. In early February this year, a wheelchair-bound woman was asked to stand up by airport staff in Kolkata. This incident happened during security clearance at the airport.