Check-in delays set off passenger outrage at KIA

Crowding at the security hold area of the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) set off domestic check-in delays and passenger outrage on Monday.

Bangalore International Airport Limited (BIAL), which operates KIA, said intensified checks carried out by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel had led to a delay in the morning.

Some of the passengers who were stuck in long queues tweeted about a 90-minute delay and alleged "mismanagement". They posted videos of the crowds and sought better redress by the authorities, even as the airport operators replied to the tweets with assurances of addressing the concerns.

Some of the passengers also claimed to have missed their flights despite having been at the airport well ahead of their scheduled departure.

Sriram, who works in an IT company in the city, said he managed to board his flight to Mumbai only because the flight was delayed. He reached the airport, along with a colleague, at 6.15 am for his 8.20 am flight. “We could see there was unusual crowding. There was yelling and jostling and I could not see any airport representative around providing answers,” he told DH.

A source in the airline industry who is also a frequent flier said KIA needs to install more check-in counters. Navigating the crowded space before the check-in is especially daunting for senior citizens, he said.

“The CISF personnel had no answer to the passengers' questions since they were not there for crowd control. We boarded the flight at around 8.25 am,” Sriram said.

BIAL response

“This (the delay) was caused because of enhanced level of checks by CISF due to security alert inputs, which coincided with a high volume of passengers during the peak time on a Monday morning. Since security of our passengers and the airport is of high priority, all the due processes had to be carried out,” a BIAL spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said the operators are working with the relevant stakeholders “to ascertain better ways” of dealing with such situations.