Runway Madness at Mumbai Airport: Man Dashes Across Apron to Board Missed Flight

In a serious breach of airport security, a 25-year-old man caused chaos at Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport on Thursday morning after attempting to run across the apron to board a flight he had already missed.

The man, identified as Piyush Soni, arrived at the airport shortly after 9:50 AM, well past the boarding time for his Air India flight to Patna. Unaware that the flight had already departed, Soni decided to take matters into his own hands.

Spotting an aircraft parked on the apron, Soni made a mad dash towards it, not realizing that the plane had just arrived from Bhuj and wasn’t even his intended flight. His actions immediately drew the attention of airport security, who were alarmed by the intrusion into such a highly restricted area.

False Claim About Airport Coach Debunked

Initially, Soni claimed that the airport coach transporting passengers to the aircraft had “accidentally” dropped him near the runway. However, security officials quickly debunked this claim. According to the Sahar police station, Soni had manually opened the emergency gate between Gate 42 and Gate 43, entering the apron area from the terminal on his own.

“He ran toward the aircraft to board it, without even confirming which plane it was,” police reported, further noting that Soni had no idea his actual flight had already taken off just minutes earlier.

Major Incident Averted

Thanks to alert airport personnel, a potentially disastrous situation was narrowly avoided. An Air India staff member later filed a formal complaint, stating that Soni’s actions could have led to a major accident—especially if aircraft had been taxiing, taking off, or landing at the time.

“He risked flight movement and potentially endangered lives,” read the complaint.

Soni was taken into custody by the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) shortly after the incident. He has since been booked under multiple charges, including offences under the Aircraft Act for endangering lives.