Vikesh and his family have found themselves stuck in Kuwait for several days after their return journey to the UK from India unexpectedly fell apart mid-trip. 'It's actually been horrendous. We've been stranded in Kuwait.
We were in transit on our way back to the UK from India. We had a 45-minute layover in Mumbai. We were on the plane, which was probably minutes away from pushing back ready to take off, and then we were told to get off the plane,' said Vikesh, a stranded British traveler.
It's actually been horrendous. We've been stranded in Kuwait. We were in transit on our way back to the UK from India. We had a 45-minute layover in Mumbai. We were on the plane, which was probably minutes away from pushing back ready to take off, and then we were told to get off the plane.
The disruption left passengers trapped inside the airport for hours, with no food or water. 'We were stranded in the airport for seven to eight hours, no food, no water. We have two young children with us – a 15-year-old son and an 11-year-old daughter.
Eventually they brought some food, snacks and water to us,' Vikesh added. Passengers were informed they would require visas to enter Kuwait, causing additional confusion among those stranded. 'We were then told we needed to apply for a Kuwait visa to enter Kuwait.
We were stranded in the airport for seven to eight hours, no food, no water. We have two young children with us – a 15-year-old son and an 11-year-old daughter. Eventually they brought some food, snacks and water to us.
Everyone – UK nationals, British nationals and Indian nationals – were moved to another area of the airport and started completing forms so we could enter Kuwait,' Vikesh explained. The visa procedure was suddenly stopped, and they were told to stand in a single line with their passports and photos showing, then transported to various hotels. The family was finally taken to lodgings after being refused entry at two other hotels.
'The first two hotels were full. We arrived at the Holiday Inn in Salmiya and we've been stuck here since today,' Vikesh said. The US-Israeli conflict with Iran enters its sixth day, leading to widespread flight cancellations.
Approximately 138,000 British nationals have registered their presence in the Middle East as the crisis persists. The first government-chartered rescue flight intended to repatriate Britons from the region failed to depart on Wednesday night due to a technical issue at the airport in Oman. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer later confirmed that two additional government-chartered flights had been organised, with one expected to depart from Oman on Thursday.
British Airways is also set to operate two more flights from Muscat to London Heathrow on Friday and Saturday.