Air India on Monday confirmed that the lavatory problems on Flight AI126, which resulted in its return to Chicago, were due to polythene bags, rags, and clothes flushed through the toilets, making eight out of 12 lavatories unusable. The flight had to be turned back after a 10-hour flight, with passengers experiencing inconvenience due to the breakdown.
“We are aware of some social media reports regarding the lavatories on AI126 flying Chicago to Delhi on 05 Mar 2025, which made the flight divert back to its point of origin, Chicago O’Hare International Airport,” stated the airline in a release. “As part of the process of investigating the incident, our crews discovered polythene bags, rags, and garments flushed down and clogged in the pipes.”
The airline stressed that the move to head back to Chicago was made with the safety and comfort of passengers in mind, since the plane was already over the Atlantic Ocean when the problem occurred. “By then, the plane was flying over the Atlantic, with places in Europe as possible cities to divert to. But since most of the European airports had night operation restrictions, it was decided to divert back to Chicago,” Air India said.
A total of 342 passengers, 303 of them in economy class, were safely deboarded, and the carrier provided full refunds as well as free rescheduling. “We thoroughly understand the discomfort caused to passengers and whose travel plans were disrupted by the diversion of the flight,” Air India stated further.
Air India also said that in earlier flights, passengers had also flushed down toilets items such as blankets, innerwear, and diapers.
