No food, one toilet: 30 hours on, 265 Mumbai-bound flyers stuck in Turkey as their ordeal drags on (WATCH)

More than 265 passengers aboard Virgin Atlantic flight VS358 from London to Mumbai have been left in a state of limbo, stranded for more than 30 grueling hours at Diyarbakır Airport in Turkey. What began as a medical emergency mid-flight on Wednesday soon spiraled into a full-blown travel nightmare, with the aircraft later suffering a technical glitch, further compounding the delay.

Distress calls and desperate pleas from passengers began flooding social media as the situation remained unresolved.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Preeti Sharma Menon, who posted on X, "Can anyone respond please?! 270 odd pax of #VS358 London Mumbai are stuck in Diyarbakir almost a day now! Unusable toilets, no food, no phone chargers, no communication whatsoever from @VirginAtlantic!”

Virgin Atlantic issued a statement expressing regret for the ordeal and claiming that passengers were provided overnight hotel accommodations. "Hi @PreetiSMenon, we’re sincerely sorry for the disruption experienced due to the urgent medical diversion. Our customers are now in overnight hotel accommodation in Turkey, while we work towards a resolution tomorrow so they can continue their journey to Mumbai. We’ll keep all customers informed," the airline posted on Friday.

However, accounts from those stranded paint a far more chaotic picture.

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“When we landed, first we remained onboard the aircraft for five hours. Then we were asked to alight as the airline needed to fix a technical issue on the plane. We have now been at the airport for 13 hours with Virgin Atlantic neither making any arrangements for us nor giving us any information on when we will leave for Mumbai,” passenger Sagar Kochhar told TOI, highlighting the confusion and lack of coordination on ground.

Amid mounting pressure, the Indian Embassy in Ankara stepped in, assuring that efforts were underway for a swift resolution.

"Embassy of India, Ankara is in constant communication with Virgin Atlantic Airlines, Diyarbakir Airport Directorate and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Turkiye. Through Mission’s coordination, appropriate care is being extended to the passengers. We are in discussion with the related authorities for the early resolution of the issue and the arrangement of an alternate flight to Mumbai for the stranded passengers," it said in a statement.

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