Toronto-Delhi Air India flight diverted due to clogged lavatories, 2nd such incident in 2 months

An Air India flight from Toronto to Delhi was diverted to Frankfurt mid-journey on May 2 due to its lavatories being clogged, as per reports.

This incident comes two months after an Air India flight from Chicago to Delhi returned due to eight out of 12 of its toilets being clogged.

Talking about the incident, an Air India spokesperson reportedly said that Air India flight AI188, operating non-stop from Toronto to Delhi, was diverted to Frankfurt due to a technical issue. The flight was airborne from Frankfurt within a couple of hours and proceeded to its destination, Delhi.

On March 6, Chicago-Delhi AI126 turned back to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport (ORD). On March 11, the airline confirmed that the lavatories were clogged due to items such as clothes, rags, and polythene bags being flushed down the toilets.

The airlines stated that eight out of twelve toilets on the flight were affected, and the decision to turn back to Chicago was made as the potential diversion options in Europe faced nighttime operational limitations. The trip back to Chicago lasted just as long, stretching the passengers’ ordeal to almost 10 hours.