[Resolved]  Sheikh Jamil Ahmad — AI 916 diverted without information to pick up passengers from another sector

My family of 4 (self, wife and my parents) decided to travel the Trivandrum-Mumbai sector on 28th October 2009 owing to it's convenient timing. As the aircraft was readying to taxi off, the Airhostess announced that the flight will land at Kochi. What was a non-stop 2 hour flight became an arduous 5 hour flight with horrendous service. All the lights in the cabin along with the airconditioning would switch off when the engines were being started. The In Flight Entertainment System was not functional, and consequently, the Attendant call switch was not functional. If the hardship faced during flight was not sufficient, the slamdown at Mumbai brought down one of the overhead service panels (picture attached).

The confusion did not end there, It took almost 15 minutes for doors to be opened. Bypassing immigration for domestic passengers took ages as there was only one person manning the counter (and no order). Baggage claim was no better with baggage being on different belts to what was shown on the display.

Had I been informed about the change of flight details before boarding, i would have claimed a refund and opted for another flight. Why Should I pay Air India for service not rendered?