Air India mulls fine up to Rs 15 lakh for those who delay flights

National carrier also plans to provide more autonomy to its managers at airports

National carrier Air India is considering imposing a penalty of up to Rs 15 lakh on unruly passengers for flight delays.

The latest proposal comes less than a month after Shiv Sena MP Ravindra Gaikwad assaulted a staffer of the national carrier at the airport here.

Now, the airline is mulling to penalise passengers who delay flights and the amount could be up to Rs 15 lakh.

A fine of Rs 5 lakh would be levied for delay up to one hour and the amount would be Rs 10 lakh in case the delay is between one to two hours, airline sources said.

The fine would be Rs 15 lakh for more than two hours delay.

"The delay period will be considered from the time of scheduled departure of the flight. Passengers can file complaints to a  body formed by the airline if they don't agree to the fine simultaneously filed against the individual (passenger) according to Aircraft Rule 1937," a senior Air India official told Business Standard. 

Since the incident involving Gaikwad on March 23, the national carrier, as well as the government, have been exploring ways to bolster the existing mechanism to rein in unruly passengers.

In another instance, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Dola Sen on April 7 created a ruckus on board an Air India flight from  Delhi to Kolkata, delaying it by nearly 40 minutes.