November 5, 2025

NEW DELHI: What a daring rescue! Air India zoomed a Boeing 787 Dreamliner all the way from Delhi to Ulaanbaatar on Tuesday to bring home 245 lucky-but-stranded passengers. These folks were originally heading to India on a Boeing 777 flight AI 174 from San Francisco but got an unexpected stopover in Mongolia’s capital on Monday due to a suspected technical snag. The alternate aircraft took off from Delhi around 4 pm IST Tuesday and is set to land in Delhi Wednesday morning with 228 passengers and 17 crew members aboard. Since Air India does not operate flights to Ulaanbaatar, it had no staff stationed there. But the Indian Embassy in Mongolia stepped in heroically! They handed out transit visas so passengers could leave the airport and sent them to hotels arranged by Air India. This swift action eased the stress of being stranded thousands of miles away. Still, some travelers felt the situation was a bit shaky. P K Singhal, a passenger on AI 174, shared, "There is no one from AI to help us here. There has been vague information about when we will return home." But the airline insists they’ve been working non-stop with Mongolian authorities and the Indian Embassy to ensure everyone’s safety and comfort. An AI spokesperson confirmed, "Air India, along with local authorities and the Indian Embassy in Mongolia, have been looking after the passengers and crew, including providing them hotel accommodation. Guests have been kept informed about the arrangements being made to fly them to Delhi. At AI, safety and wellbeing of our passengers and crew remain top priority." The Indian Embassy also posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday afternoon: "On Nov 3, 2025, AI 174 operating from SFO to Delhi via Kolkata, made a precautionary landing at around 7.59 pm at Ulaanbaatar International Airport. A team of Embassy officials were immediately deputed at the airport to facilitate immigration and hotel stay of the 228 passengers plus crew members. With assistance of the embassy consular team, all immigration & visa facilitation, transportation, hotel accommodation was arranged in coordination with the Mongolian authorities. The passengers are being looked after." This isn’t Air India’s first rodeo with long-haul flight diversions. Earlier, in June 2023, a flight had to divert to Magadan in Russia, leaving passengers stuck for 39 hours before finally reaching home after 57 hours. AI generously refunded fares and gave travel vouchers for that delay. Another surprise was in July 2024 when a Delhi-SFO flight diverted to Krasnoyarsk in Siberia. But this time, Air India swiftly sent a fresh aircraft to rescue passengers, showing quick action and care. Passengers stuck in Ulaanbaatar can now look forward to a comfortable ride back home, thanks to Air India's prompt response and the Indian Embassy's invaluable help. A dramatic flight adventure ended with a happy reunion on Indian soil!

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Tags: Air india, Boeing 787 dreamliner, Flight Diversion, Ulaanbaatar, Passenger Rescue, India-Mongolia,