Paralympic silver medallist Deepa Malik has lambasted Vistara airline for alleged rude behaviour of its crew and “poor handling” of wheelchair-bound passengers on a recent flight. The airline promptly issued an apology.
The incident occurred on Wednesday when Deepa was travelling from Mumbai to Delhi on Vistara flight UK 902.
She alleged in her written complaint that one of the crew members was impolite to her while she was speaking with her mother.
"Crew member Priyanka was very rude in the flight. She told me to speak softly when I called my parents to inform them about the delay in flight," she wrote in the complaint.
When she objected to this behaviour, the crew member said ‘sweetheart, chill’.
"Also, wheelchair handling is so poor that you do not know how to shift a person from the seat to the cabin chair. The entire staff stands and looks at each other for 10 minutes. No action," she added.
"As a team, we would like to sincerely apologise to Deepa for her disappointing experience. We have been in touch with Deepa and are grateful for the feedback shared by her. We are investigating the incident thoroughly and will take all necessary corrective actions to ensure something like this never occurs again," Vistara said in its apology letter to Deepa.
In the Rio Paralympics, Deepa had become the first Indian woman para-athlete ever to win a medal when she bagged a silver in the women’s shot put F53 event.
Deepa tweeted to say:
Very poor handling of wheelchair passenger in De boarding and fragile items. Rude n ill mannered crew. Sad experience. @airvistara pic.twitter.com/UAUKA8UJqt
— Deepa Malik (@DeepaAthlete) October 4, 2016
Happy to receive such a positive response and prompt action for future betterment. Kudos to your sincere efforts. Thank u @airvistara https://t.co/KjlzAt6Qg9
— Deepa Malik (@DeepaAthlete) October 5, 2016
Yes, @airvistara was quick to respond and take prompt measures for future... They visited and resolved and also adding efforts to rectify https://t.co/WVCRM7ffd1
— Deepa Malik (@DeepaAthlete) October 5, 2016
The airline apologized in a tweet.
Our sincere apologies to Ms. Deepa Malik @DeepaAthlete pic.twitter.com/iF2FThkBqs
— Vistara (@airvistara) October 5, 2016