IndiGo flight operations improved further on Tuesday, but several passengers were still waiting to find their missing luggage, a visit to the Calcutta airport suggested.

The lack of clear communication from IndiGo staff compounded their misery, passengers alleged.

“Most of the bags stuck at the airports have already been delivered back to your homes. Our teams are working very hard on delivering the remaining ones very soon,” IndiGo CEO Peter Elbers said in a video message on Tuesday.

Hazra resident Rashmi Goenka was having an animated discussion with an IndiGo staff member in front of the airline’s counter at gate 3C in the departure level of the airport on Tuesday afternoon.

Her husband, father-in-law and sister-in-law were supposed to reach Aurangabad via Mumbai on an IndiGo flight on December 3. The connecting flight got cancelled at the last moment. However, they were told that the luggage, comprising four bags, was in transit. “When the flight was cancelled at the Mumbai airport, my husband requested IndiGo staff to hand over the luggage, which they refused,” said Goenka.

Her family members took a train to Aurangabad on December 4.

“On December 7 (Sunday), we got a call from an IndiGo representative at the Mumbai airport saying all four bags have been traced. The caller said the luggage would be delivered wherever we wanted. We gave our home address. On December 8 (Monday), another IndiGo representative from Calcutta airport called, saying three of the four bags have been traced. I told him about the call the day before. He said he would check and get back, but never did. When I called in the evening, he said his shift was over and shared another number. Nobody answered calls on that number,” said Goenka.

Not willing to take any more chances, Goenka was at the airport on Tuesday. She went to the IndiGo counter but was taken to another counter where dozens of bags were stacked. But her luggage was not among them. After a while, she got a call from her husband, who said a man had reached their home with two bags. But he could not say anything about the remaining two bags. “However, he said many more bags were stacked at a godown near the airport building and shared a number of a man at the godown,” she said.

Goenka called that number, and the man who answered the call asked her to come over. Before going there, Goenka went to the IndiGo counter. “I was advised against going to the godown. But I still went there and found another bag. But the fourth bag is still missing,” she said. Goenka said she would revisit the IndiGo counter on Wednesday.

“IndiGo has been claiming that they have returned thousands of bags to passengers. I seriously doubt these claims. My experience has been traumatic,” said Goenka.

Lalita Modi flew into Calcutta from Bangalore on December 5, but not before a cancellation. She was rescheduled on another flight. Her luggage did not reach Calcutta. She also got a call from IndiGo. She was told that her luggage had been traced. Modi had come to attend a ceremony at a private resort in Taki in North 24-Parganas. She shared the resort’s address. But the luggage never arrived.

She checked out on Tuesday and went straight to the airport. “They said they are looking for my luggage. Nothing more. I don’t know what to do. They can’t even confirm if my luggage is out for delivery. If it reaches the resort, I will have to somehow get it back,” said Modi, who was scheduled to fly out of Calcutta on Wednesday.