'Where is the empathy Air India': Actor calls out airlines for denying medical waiver for her ailing 92-year-old father

Actor Lisa Ray took to social media to call out Air India for allegedly showing a lack of empathy after the airline denied a medical waiver request for her 92-year-old ailing father. She shared her frustration on X (formerly Twitter), stating that despite submitting a doctor’s letter, the waiver was rejected without proper explanation.

“Here we go again @airindia. My father is 92, unwell and I have to cancel travel due to his ailing condition. Submitted doctors letter and the waiver was denied? How is that possible? Where is the empathy from an airline that is claiming to care about passengers (sic),” Ray wrote.

Air India’s official account responded, expressing sympathy and asking her to share further details via direct message. “Dear Ms. Ray, we empathize with your concern and wish your father a speedy recovery. Please help us with the email address from which you've written to us or the case ID (if any) via DM. We'll look into it," the airline stated.

Ray also posted a screenshot of her exchange with the travel agency handling the booking. The response from the agency indicated that there was no provision for a medical waiver in her case, even though her father had been hospitalised.

Her post sparked mixed reactions online, with some sympathizing with her plight, while others pointed out that medical waivers might not apply to non-flexible tickets. "No airline will and no airline SHOULD give you a waiver for whatever reason if your ticket is not a flexible or changeable ticket," one user commented. Others advised purchasing flexible tickets or travel insurance for future situations.