NEW DELHI: “Urge passengers to use lavatories only for the purposes that they are meant for.” Air India on Monday issued this unusual appeal after yet another instance of clogged lavoratories affected yet another long haul flight. Flushing the lavs led to AI finding passengers had flushed polythene bags, rags, and clothes that led to clogged pipes and overflowing toilets.
AI has long faced this issue, mostly with its old Boeing 777s that are used for the North America long hauls. The most recent instance was on March 5 when a Chicago -Delhi flight had to return to the US after eight of the 12 lavs on the B777 had become unserviceable. The airline found the same reason for toilets clogging this time too, leading it to issue the appeal: “use lavs only for the purpose they are meant for.” Meaning, advising passengers not to flush things like hand towels, blankets and plastic bags that will clog lavs up.
Also read: Clogged toilets? Air India flight forced to return to Chicago after 10 hours in air
“We are aware of some social media posts about the unserviceable lavatories on AI126 operating Chicago to Delhi on March 5, 2025, that caused the flight’s diversion back to its origin, Chicago…. as part of our investigation into the incident, our teams found polythene bags, rags, and clothes that had been flushed down and stuck in the plumbing. This led the lavatories to become unserviceable,” AI said in a statement.
“While we fully empathise with passengers who faced discomfort and whose travel plans have been affected by the flight’s diversion, we would like to put forth the following facts about the flight:
“The flight departed in time at 1648 Hrs (UTC). About an hour and forty-five minutes into the flight, the crew reported some of the lavatories in business and economy class to be unserviceable. Subsequently, eight of the 12 lavatories in the aircraft became unserviceable, causing discomfort to all on board. By this time, the aircraft was overflying the Atlantic, leaving points in Europe as potential cities to divert to. However, due to restrictions on night operations at most of the European airports, it was decided to divert back to Chicago,” the statement added.
“The decision to divert was taken entirely in the interest of passenger comfort and safety. Upon landing at Chicago, all passengers were provided immediate assistance, including hotel accommodation and alternative flight options to continue their journey to Delhi. While not found on AI126 of 05 March 2025, our teams have previously also found objects such as blankets, innerwear, and diapers, among other waste, having been flushed down the toilets on other flights. We take this opportunity to urge passengers to use lavatories only for the purposes that they are meant for.”
