Aviation firm files defamation suit against Nora Fatehi for calling its plane a 'toy'

Dunes Aviation, Fatehi recorded videos inside a Cessna Citation CJ2 aircraft during a Mumbai-Jaipur flight in December last year, describing the aircraft as a “miniature”, a “toy” and a “Lego airplane” and posted them on her Instagram handle.

The company alleged that “reckless” statements made by the actor, who has more than 4.6 crore followers, triggered booking cancellations and severely hurt its commercial operations. The suit, filed in April this year, stated that Fatehi’s statements were “reckless, irresponsible, and made without any technical knowledge, verification or factual basis”.

Dunes Aviation said that owing to Fatehi’s substantial follower base, her “reckless statements” have caused “serious reputational damage, loss of goodwill and adverse commercial impact” to the company. The company has suffered a 15-20 per cent drop in bookings and a rise in cancellations.

It said the aircraft was standard and ideally sized for the journey undertaken by the defendant, is fully DGCA-certified, airworthy and lawfully operated under a valid NSOP.Apart from Rs 3 crore in damages, the suit also sought the court’s direction for immediate removal of all contents from social media platforms containing the statement or references to the aircraft, and a public clarification by the actor.