Emails reveal senior Air India management were aware of the situation hours after the flight.

The mail threads seen by HT include those sent to the head of inflight service department (IFSD), base operations in India, Lead HR head of IFSD, head of northern region of IFSD and of complaints (customer care), on November 27 by the cabin crew supervisor.

On January 4, media reports first highlighted the incident, causing outrage among the public at large, and prompting DGCA, which did not know about it till then, to act.

Air India’s senior management, including its chairman and managing director Campbell Wilson, were aware of the incident on Flight AI-102 on November 26, when a drunk passenger allegedly urinated on a woman passenger, according to e-mails reviewed by Hindustan Times — a fact that runs contrary to claims by the airline’s top brass that they were not immediately informed of the incident.

The mail threads seen by HT include those sent to the head of inflight service department (IFSD), base operations in India, Lead HR head of IFSD, head of northern region of IFSD and of complaints (customer care), on November 27 by the cabin crew supervisor.

On Friday, India’s airline regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation imposed a penalty of ₹30 lakh on Air India, suspended the license of the pilot-in-command of the New York-Delhi flight, and slapped a fine of ₹3 lakh on the airline’s director of in-flight services for failing to discharge her duties.

One of the earliest messages was sent at 3.46pm — the flight landed at 1pm — and it was also acknowledged by the recipient, Sandeep Verma, head of IFSD, with a quick “Ok, noted.”

Wilson himself also received an e-mail from the woman passenger’s son-in-law on the same evening, and forwarded the mail to the head of customer care, asking that it be attended to. HT has reviewed a copy of these mails too.

On January 4, media reports first highlighted the incident, causing outrage among the public at large, and prompting DGCA, which did not know about it till then, to act.

At the time, the airline said the delay in reporting the matter to DGCA was because the crew did not report it on time. “We have also constituted an internal committee to probe lapses on part of Air India’s crew and address the deficiencies that delayed quick redressal of the situation...,” Air India said in a statement on January 4. Read More On..