About 60 Indian passengers were stranded at Kuwait airport for over 13 hours after their Gulf Air flight from Mumbai to Manchester had to make an emergency landing. The Indian embassy in Kuwait confirmed through an X post that the flight finally left for Manchester at 4:34 am on Monday.

The embassy’s post read, “Gulf Air flight to Manchester finally departed at 0434 hours today carrying stranded Indian passengers, among others. The embassy team was on the ground till the flight departed."

Passengers complain about bias and poor assistance

While waiting for a long time, the passengers had many problems. Some said they were not given enough help or food. Videos on social media showed a few passengers arguing with the airport staff.

Some passengers said they were treated badly and claimed that the airline only gave hotel rooms to people with passports from the European Union, the UK, and the US. They felt the airline was unfair to passengers from India, Pakistan, and other Southeast Asian countries.

In response, the Indian embassy said in an X post on Sunday that they immediately contacted Gulf Air and clarified Kuwait’s visa rules for Indian travelers.

Embassy helps stranded passengers

The embassy said they sent a team to the airport to assist the passengers and work with the airline. The passengers were given space in two airport lounges, but they couldn't get rooms in the airport hotel because it was fully booked for the ongoing GCC Summit.

The embassy explained that Indian nationals cannot get a visa on arrival in Kuwait and added, “All government offices are closed today due to the GCC Summit being hosted by Kuwait.” Passengers said the flight turned around before it landed, and they were told about the change in the flight path only 20 minutes before landing in Kuwait.