Earlier this week, an Air India cabin crew member was reportedly attacked by an intruder at the Radisson Red Hotel in London. The intruder attacked the crew member on Thursday evening while other staff from several Air India flights were staying at the same hotel near London’s Heathrow Airport.
A source familiar with the matter, detailing the attack, said the female staff member was attacked with a coat hanger and dragged across the floor. “The crew member was sleeping when an intruder attacked her in her room at around 1.30 am. She was frightened, woke up and screamed for help. He attacked her with a coat hanger and dragged her across the floor while she tried to escape towards the door,” the Times of India quoted a source as saying.
The attacker was caught and handed over to the authorities. The victim suffered bruises while trying to escape from the intruder’s grip. She received medical treatment at a hospital after the attack and is on her way to Mumbai, The Hindu reports.
The source added, “She was badly bruised and the intruder tried to escape. Police were called and she was taken to a hospital. She could not fly back to duty and a friend from the crew stayed with her,” TOI reported.
Air India issued a statement following the attack on one of its crew members in a London hotel room. The spokesperson said Air India gives the highest priority to the safety and well-being of our crew and employees and described the attack as an “unlawful intrusion into a hotel operated by a major international chain”.
The airline expressed its dismay over the incident, adding: “We are providing all possible support, including professional counselling, to our colleague and his team. Air India is also working with the local police to pursue the matter to the fullest extent of the law and with the hotel management to ensure that such incidents do not recur. We request that the privacy of those involved be respected.”
Despite repeated complaints from airline staff about inadequate security, dark corridors, unmanned reception desks and miscreants knocking on hotel doors, no steps have been taken to tighten security measures.
