A SpiceJet flight to Mumbai, originally scheduled to depart from the Calcutta airport at 5am on Sunday, was initially rescheduled for 3.25am but ultimately took off at noon.

Around 180 passengers on Flight SG9666 had to endure a delay that lasted more than eight hours. A significant number missed their connecting flights from Mumbai. Moreover, many others claimed that there was a lack of consistency in the communication from the airline's ground staff.

Gate 101, the designated boarding area, was congested and lacked sufficient seating, compelling numerous passengers to either stand or sit on the ground.

A Calcuttan now settled in Mumbai was among the passengers. Nandini Roy, in her late 40s, was travelling with her son and daughter. "It was a horrible experience, to say the least," said Nandini, who lives in Dahisar, a northern suburb of Mumbai. She had come to Calcutta after a death in her family.

Her son is in Class IX and has his exams from Monday.

"I had booked an early morning flight because I wanted to reach my home in Mumbai as soon as possible. My son needs time to prepare for the exam. But the entire plan went for a toss," said Nandini, whose family home is in Hatibagan in north Calcutta.

She received a message around midnight that her flight had been rescheduled for 3.25am. She went to the airport around 1am. What followed was an ordeal that lasted hours.

During the next eight hours, Nandini received four messages, each announcing a new departure time. The first one said 5.05am; the second one pushed it back to 8am; the third one said 9am, while the last said 11.30am.

"Boarding began around 11.30am and the flight finally departed at 12.10pm," Nandini said.

Nandini and several other passengers alleged poor communication from the ground staff.

“We were first told that there were some technical problems that caused the delay. Then, they said that a flight from Mumbai will reach Calcutta and take us back to Mumbai. A third time, another staff member said that there was a problem in getting the ground clearance,” said another passenger, who did not want to be named.

“Many passengers had to spend hours standing or sitting on the floor because the number of chairs was far less than the number of passengers waiting at the boarding area. Many passengers were agitated and had heated arguments with the staff, who pleaded helplessness,” the passenger said.

SpiceJet blamed the delay on “operational issues”.

“SG Flight 9666, dated 15 February 2026, scheduled to operate from Kolkata to Mumbai, was delayed due to operational issues in the previous rotation of the aircraft. The flight was further delayed due to a Notam (Notice to Airmen) in Mumbai till 4am. The inconvenience caused to the passengers is deeply regretted,” said a spokesperson for the carrier.