Passengers have been stranded for more than 24 hours after a flight from Bahrain to Kuwait was cancelled on December 17.

Air India Express flight IX 890 was supposed to leave at 10.15am, but a fuel leak detected on landing in Bahrain meant the flight was called off, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.

A total of 101 passengers booked on the flight bound for Mangalore, India, via Kuwait were supposed to board the flight at Bahrain International Airport (BIA) on Wednesday morning.

Another 29 flew in from Mangalore, bound for Kuwait, and all were accommodated at the Gulf Gate Hotel on Wednesday night while repairs were carried out.

Passengers to Kuwait left on a Kuwait Airways flight yesterday evening, while Air India officials were communicating with operations control in New Delhi, India, to come up with an alternative flight for Mangalore-bound passengers - who had still not left last night.

"There was a fuel leakage in the aircraft and we had to fly in the part which was required to fix the technical issue from Cochin, Kerala," Air India's Bahrain country manager Rajneesh Bagga told the GDN.

"Engineers worked on it, but proved unsuccessful and we tried to borrow the part from Gulf Air, which again did not work.

"Since it is a fuel leakage, we didn't want to take a chance so we cancelled the flight.

"Kuwait passengers were accommodated on a Kuwait Airways flight, while the integrated operations control centre, New Delhi, has been urged to send us an alternative aircraft to fly out the Mangalore passengers.

"At the same time, engineers are still working and will see if the issue can be rectified."

However, passengers claimed there had been a lack of communication and complained that perishable cargo would spoil.

"We are left without any information and in uncertainty," said Gulf Readymix employee Nelson Ajay D'Souza, 32.

"We have commitments based on which we have planned the trip and our baggage has perishable items - who is responsible for these losses?"

Another passenger, Timothy Vivek, expressed frustration at the delay. "We were left in the airport without any information for almost seven hours from 9.30am," said the Mangalore-bound Bahrain resident.

"First they said it was delayed for an hour and later said we would leave by 2pm. We were served lunch at 5pm and later taken to Gulf Gate Hotel for an overnight stay."

Six families travelled on Jet Airways at their own expense, while the remaining 75 people were given boarding passes for the regular scheduled flight to Mangalore today at 11am.

Passengers had refused to leave the airport until they got confirmation of their flight and returned to the hotel by 8.30pm last night.

"We issued the boarding pass to all those who are travelling with us and it is confirmed that they would fly the scheduled regular flight to Mangalore,"said Bagga.

"We don't have a financial compensation system, but we will make sure that these passengers are compensated by way of upgrade the next time they travel.

"We regret the inconvenience caused and we have done the best possible to help the passengers." - TradeArabia News Service