Air India to operate relief flight from Mumbai to fly passengers stranded in Russia

Mumbai: Air India on Friday said it is operating a relief flight from Mumbai to fly its Delhi-San Francisco flight passengers, who are stranded at the Krasnoyarsk International Airport (KJA) in Russia since Thursday.

In an updated statement on microblogging site X, the airline said it has already received regulatory approvals for the relief flight.

Regulatory clearances have been obtained for a relief flight, which is departing from Mumbai to fly the stranded passengers from the Krasnoyarsk International Airport, Air India said.

The San Francisco-bound Air India flight from Delhi was diverted to Krasnoyarsk international airport in Russia on Thursday due to a technical issue.

Air India's local support was activated to assist passengers, who were required by authorities to remain in the terminal building in the absence of Russian visas.

The flight AI 183 had 225 passengers and 19 crew members onboard.

Food and beverage amenities at the terminal, which were closed for the evening, have now opened and meals are being provided to all passengers, the airline said.

Moreover, representatives from the Indian consulate in Moscow have travelled overnight and are working with the Russian authorities to allow passengers to move to hotels, which have been on standby throughout the night, according to Air India.