Pune, 19 January 2026: Passengers travelling from Pune to Ahmedabad faced major inconvenience after an Akasa Air flight was delayed by almost nine hours, causing confusion and protests at the airport.
Flight QP-1509 was scheduled to depart from Pune Airport at 11:55 pm on Saturday (January 17). Check-in was completed and passengers had reached the boarding gate. However, the aircraft did not arrive at the airport as scheduled.
Initially, the airline informed passengers that the flight was delayed. As hours passed without clear updates, passengers continued to wait. Later, they were told that the flight had been cancelled, without a detailed explanation. This led to angry scenes at the airport, with several passengers protesting over the lack of timely communication.
After the disruption, Akasa Air arranged an alternative aircraft. The flight finally departed from Pune at 9:10 am on Sunday (January 18) and landed at Ahmedabad Airport at 10:45 am. The total delay extended to nearly nine hours.
Many passengers took to social media to express their frustration, citing inconvenience, uncertainty, and poor communication during the long wait.
In a statement, Akasa Air said the delay was caused by a technical issue with the aircraft and new regulations related to pilot duty hours, which made it impossible to operate the flight as scheduled. The airline said that accommodation and meals were provided to affected passengers while arrangements for the alternate flight were made.