Hundreds of Virgin Atlantic passengers were left stranded at a remote Turkish Air Force base after their flight was unexpectedly diverted, it was claimed.
A female passenger aboard flight VS358 from London to Mumbai was reportedly taken ill on Wednesday, forcing the pilots to make a precautionary landing at Diyarbakir airport in south-eastern Turkey.
The Virgin’s Airbus A350 airliner then suffered a technical problem and it could not take off again after the sick passenger was offloaded, The Sun reported.
Other passengers have taken to social media, lambasting the airline for leaving them with minimal help.
Preeti Sharma Menon, one of the passengers aboard VS358, posted on X on Friday morning: “Thanks to the Indian consular officer in Turkey, the passengers were moved to a hotel last night. Virgin Atlantic has still not provided a definitive plan on when they will fly home.
On Thursday, she wrote: “270 odd pax of #VS358 London Mumbai are stuck in Diyarbakir almost a day now! Unusable toilets, no food, no phone chargers, no communication whatsoever from Virgin Atlantic”.
Sherilyn Fernandes, who said she had a relative aboard the flight, added in a post sent to the Indian Embassy on X: “The airport staff is furious about the landing, even though it’s not the passengers’ fault. They are even demanding their passports.
“My family is worried as Tyson’s phone battery is low, and he may soon lose contact with us. Please do something.”
Other passengers claimed there was only one toilet in the terminal building they were being kept in, as well as saying that no blankets or bedding were provided despite single-digit overnight temperatures. Weather reports from the airport recorded temperatures as low as 4c.
‘Safety and security remains our highest priority’
The case has made headlines in the Indian news media thanks to the large number of Indian nationals aboard the flight.
India’s Turkish embassy told the India Today news website that it was in “constant communication with Virgin Atlantic Airlines, Diyarbakir Airport Directorate, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turkiye”.
Many of the Indian nationals aboard the non-stop flight did not have visas for Turkey, meaning they were not allowed to leave Diyarbakir airport for local hotels.
A Virgin Atlantic spokesman said: “The VS358 flight from London Heathrow to Mumbai on 2nd April was cancelled due to an urgent medical diversion to Diyarbakır Airport in Turkey, followed by technical inspections of the aircraft.
“The safety and security of our customers and crew remains our highest priority, and we sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused.
“With the necessary technical approvals now in place, we will continue flight VS1358 from Diyarbakır Airport at approximately 12:00 local time on Friday, 4th April, arriving in Mumbai at approximately 20:30 local.
“The majority of our customers were provided with overnight hotel accommodation ahead of their onward journey today. We’d like to sincerely apologise for the delay and any inconvenience caused.”
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