Ashwini Bide is a 1995 batch IAS officer.
New Delhi:
Ashwini Bhide, a government official traveling on a British Airways flight, claimed she was downgraded from premium economy upon check-in on the false pretext of being overbooked.
Ms Bede is a 1995 batch Indian Administrative Officer in the Maharashtra cadre and is known for her work on the Aqua Line of the Mumbai Metro.
Are you cheating or following discriminatory/racist policies? @BritishAirways Why do they forget about compensation and downgrade premium economy passengers at the check-in counter under the false pretext of overbooking? This is said to be common…
— Ashwini Bhide (@AshwiniBhide) January 12, 2024
“Are you cheating at British Airways or following a discriminatory/racist policy? Forget about compensation, check-in counters under false pretexts of overbooking without paying the difference. Why do they downgrade premium economy passengers in “I heard this is a common practice by BA”, she tagged Mumbai Airport, aviation regulator DGCA and Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia. I added it and wrote it as an X.
In response to her post, the airline said: “We are deeply disappointed to learn that this situation occurred and apologize for any inconvenience caused.”
Several users responded to her post and called out the airline for its actions. One user wrote: “I was downgraded from business class to crappy premium economy so much that I’m still waiting for the difference in fare. I was flying from Mumbai to London.”
“I have flown once on BA Airlines and they are horribly racist. The staff are rude and lack basic courtesy. I have decided not to fly again. We Indians fly internationally You should change to Air India and Vistara when flying,” another person wrote.
A third supported the bureaucrat’s claims, saying it was common practice for airlines to downgrade customers for overbooking. “Apparently that’s the general practice. Same with Air France…you need to have a valid ticket and be white…” he wrote.
