Changes to flight schedule & the elderly: Airlines must provide wheelchair

An airline is responsible if passengers face inconvenience due to last-minute changes to flight schedule

Sudha Honavar and her husband had booked tickets on Air India's Flight AI 126 from Chicago to Mumbai. As both of them were aged, they had chosen this flight as it was a direct one and would cause least discomfort.

Without any prior intimation, just before departure on October 31, 2010, Air India rescheduled the flight to Delhi's International Terminal, and a connecting flight AI 102 from Delhi’s domestic terminal, which was about a kilometre away. Since she would not be able to walk this distance, she requested Air India’s Chicago counter to arrange for a wheelchair at Delhi.

On landing in