Want service? Don't fly Air India

London resident Vijay Rana has created Air India Story, a blog that records how Air India treats its passengers. Dozens of people have already posted their stories, mostly complaining about canceled flights, long delays, poor service and rudeness.

I once traveled by Air India (for the first and last time), from Singapore to Chennai. There was a Singaporean Indian beside me. ... He asked for a beer from the air-hostess. She took awfully long to arrive, but to my surprise she had two cans instead of one. The man asked why, to which she replied, "You will ask for another can anyways, so just have it." [Link]

After reading this story, thousands of men vowed not to fly any other airline. Two beers instead of one! That should be AI's slogan.

I have had varied experiences. On one occasion, I had a very efficient and courteous flight attendant. On another, I was cold and asked for a blanket. The attendant said they weren't given sufficient blankets (because it is a "temperature controlled flight"), but she tried to help me by "stealing" one from a passenger who was sleeping. He actually woke up and snatched it back from her -- good for him. I don't remember if I finally got one or not, but it sure was amusing. [Link]

Amusing for you, but probably not for the other guy. If you ever fly AI, make sure you take your own blanket and some sort of anti-theft device.

In 2000, a friend of mine traveled from the United States to India on an Air India flight whose final destination was Bangalore. ... This flight, which was through LHR, did not serve any meals at all in the economy class. They stated that the caterer failed to upload food. [Link]

No food on a flight from the U.S. to India? I'd be walking down the aisle asking passengers, "Did anyone bring a pot in their carry-on baggage? That flight attendant looks really delectable."

Three years back, my two kids and I boarded the Air India flight from Trivandrum to Dubai. You must understand the effort a father takes on a trip with small kids and the pain of feeding them food and water. When the male attendant started serving coffee/tea after lunch, I politely asked him not to give it to me then, and I would ask later, because I was feeding my younger one. The man replied: "If you want it, take it. I don’t have time to serve you later." [Link]

What he should have said was: "You'd better take your tea now, sir. We might run out of hot water."

Last year in November I traveled to New York with my sister on an Air India flight from London. The flight wasn't full but still by some miracle they managed to run out of vegetarian food halfway through the flight. Though I am a non-vegetarian, a family sitting behind us were caught in an uneasy situation as they neither ate fish nor meat. Though we swapped our meals with them, there were still a good 20 people who chose not to eat anything. [Link]

An Indian airline running out of vegetarian food is like an Irish airline running out of whiskey. I'm amazed the passengers sat quietly and didn't storm the cockpit. It must have been a good movie.

In May 2005, all set for my first international flight, I excitedly boarded an AI flight from IGI Airport flying to Singapore. ... It was an old aircraft, at least 10 years old. As the plane went down the runway, it started shaking and one could smell ATF inside the plane, which was an awful experience, considering my first international flight. The drop-down TV screens were not working, just hanging there. Some snacks were served soon after, and I asked the air-hostess for a drink. Rudely she replied, "First you finish this, then after dinner I'll serve you your drinks." [Link]

Don't blame the flight attendant. When she was trained, she was told to "treat your passengers the way you'd want your children to be treated."

Excerpts were edited slightly for clarity.
Photo by Premshree Pillai