Mumbai: At least 100 passengers of IndiGo's Istanbul-bound flight are stranded at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport due to a 16-hour delay caused by a technical issue.

Flight 6E17, initially scheduled to depart at 6:55 a.m., faced repeated delays. IndiGo has apologised for the inconvenience and announced that an alternative aircraft has been arranged, with the revised departure set for 11:00 p.m.

"We regret that our flight 6E17, originally scheduled to operate from Mumbai to Istanbul, faced a delay due to technical issues. Unfortunately, despite our best efforts to rectify the issue and dispatch it to the destination, we eventually had to cancel the flight," the airline stated. "An alternate aircraft has been arranged and is now scheduled to depart at 2300 hrs. We want to assure our customers that their safety and comfort remain our top priorities," it added.

Sources revealed that the flight was delayed multiple times, with passengers being asked to board and deboard the aircraft repeatedly before being informed of the final departure schedule later in the day.

Several passengers, many of whom were students, staged a protest at the airport, demanding refunds or alternative flight arrangements. They also vented their frustrations on social media.

Sonam Saigal, an X user, said, "My brother has been stuck at the Mumbai International Airport for more than 12 hours due to extremely unprofessional behavior by @IndiGo6E and their staff. He had a flight to Istanbul which 1st got delayed, then he was made to board and de-board again twice!!"

She further added, "The staff is extremely rude and refuse to answer any questions about rescheduling and refund. There are 492 other passengers waiting for any basic communication from the @IndiGo6E staff. Highly disappointing behaviour..."

Another passenger, Sachin Chintalwad, expressed concerns about missing his connecting flight to Washington from Istanbul. He wrote, "Dear indigo this is not fair... Now it's 5 hr. Delay (sic) for 6E 17 from mumbai to Istanbul. And i have connecting flight from Istanbul to IAD Washington and I'm going to miss that. Next flight also operated by indigo... Please suggest what to do."

Biresh Kumar Singh also shared his grievance, stating, "Flight to Istanbul 6E17 scheduled for 6:55 am yet to take off from Mumbai, passengers being moved to and from from a aerobridge to waiting area, staff clueless on what's happening and when will the flight take off - pathetic service, taking passengers for granted."