When Technology Fails, Loyalty Means Nothing: My Ordeal with Air India

By A Concerned Maharaja Gold Member

I have always chosen to book directly with Air India.

As someone who travels frequently for work, I value the ability to access my bookings instantly and make changes whenever necessary. It is why I avoid travel agents. I want my travel plans at my fingertips.

Unfortunately, my recent experience with Air India has left me questioning whether that trust was misplaced.

I made my booking directly with the airline on 22 May 2026 and commenced my journey on 28 May 2026. The first sector of my journey was delayed by approximately an hour due to heavy rains. Delays caused by weather are understandable and certainly not the issue.

The issue began immediately afterwards.

Following the delayed flight, I suddenly found myself unable to access the modification feature on the Air India application. I could view my booking, but I could no longer manage it. A simple date change became impossible.

Since 28 May, I have spent an unreasonable amount of time calling Air India's customer service centres while travelling for business. Some agents were professional and helpful. Others relied solely on scripted responses that failed to address the underlying problem.

At one stage, my entire booking was cancelled and later reinstated after intervention from a supervisor. There was something deeply unsettling about discovering that a confirmed booking, one that had already been partially flown, suddenly no longer existed.

The matter was eventually resolved, but not without multiple calls, waiting for callbacks and taking time away from my professional commitments.

When I needed to modify my final sector, I once again found myself unable to use the app. The date change was eventually completed, but only after another round of calls and inconvenience.

The experience has been exhausting.

What disappoints me most is not the technical issue itself. Technology fails and delays happen. What is difficult to accept is the apparent absence of ownership and accountability once things begin to go wrong.

I raised my concerns repeatedly and opened a formal complaint under Case Number 42406825. However, I continued receiving standard responses from a Mr. Vipin Sharma that merely confirmed my booking had been changed, without addressing the actual grievance.

My complaint was never about the date change itself. It was about why I lost access to managing my booking in the first place, why I had to spend hours on calls to achieve something that should have taken minutes, and why I had to endure stress and disruption because of repeated system failures and poor communication.

Most importantly, my complaint was about why a loyal customer should have to fight so hard simply to receive an acknowledgement that something had gone wrong.

I am a Maharaja Gold member. I am not seeking preferential treatment. I expect competence, systems that work and customer service representatives who understand the issue rather than simply close a ticket with a standard response. Above all, I expect accountability.

Air India has invested heavily in its transformation, introducing new aircraft, refreshing its brand and positioning itself as a world-class airline. These are commendable efforts. But transformation is not only about what passengers see onboard. It is equally about the experience they have when they need assistance and when something goes wrong.

A modern airline cannot claim digital excellence if its customers lose access to their bookings after an operational disruption and are forced to depend entirely on call centres for basic functions.

Loyalty is built on trust and consistency.

After weeks of frustration, calls, unresolved grievances and avoidable stress, I am left with one question: If a Maharaja Gold member who books directly with the airline cannot manage their own reservation, what experience can the average passenger expect?

Air India is no longer India's national carrier. It is a privately owned airline that should be held to the same standards of service and accountability as any other commercial airline.

At this stage, my concern is not whether Air India chooses to review its systems. My concern is the time, stress and anxiety this episode has caused, the disruption to my work commitments and the hours wasted resolving issues that should never have arisen.

Customers who suffer prolonged inconvenience deserve acknowledgement and appropriate compensation. Loyalty should mean more than collecting points; it should mean that when things go wrong, a customer's time is respected and their concerns are properly addressed.

To date, I have incurred a significant cost in terms of time, disruption to my business commitments and emotional distress. I remain deeply disappointed by the manner in which this matter has been handled and continue to seek compensation for the unnecessary distress, inconvenience and expense caused.

The author has retained copies of booking records, email correspondence and call logs related to this matter. This article is published only after repeated attempts to resolve the matter directly with Air India.