Ahmedabad: Just days after a tragic plane crash, an Air India flight from Ahmedabad to London was cancelled today. Flight AI 159, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, was scheduled to depart at 1:10 pm but was called off hours before the scheduled take-off from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport (SVPIA) in the city.

Clarifying the reason for the cancellation, an Air India spokesperson said, “Flight AI159 from Ahmedabad to Gatwick has been cancelled today due to the unavailability of the aircraft, resulting from airspace restrictions and additional precautionary checks, leading to longer than usual turnaround of aircraft, and not due to any technical snag as claimed.”

“We regret the inconvenience caused to our passengers and have made alternative arrangements to fly them to their destination. We are providing hotel accommodation and also offering full refunds on cancellations or complimentary rescheduling if opted by the passengers. Consequently, flight AI170 from London Gatwick to Amritsar of 17 June stands cancelled,” the spokesperson added.

It is learnt that the last-minute cancellation left around 200 London-bound travellers stranded at the airport, causing significant inconvenience.

“We have been told that today’s flight has been cancelled and it will depart at 11:00 am tomorrow. All passengers here are troubled,” a relative of an AI-159 passenger told a news agency.

This marks the second such cancellation of an Ahmedabad–London Air India flight since the recent crash. The earlier flight on June 14 was also called off. Since Monday, the previous flight number AI 171 has been retired, and the service is now operating as AI 159. DeshGujarat