Passengers waiting to board an Emirates Airlines jet bound for Dubai from India’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport were disappointed on Sunday as it took off without them. Heavy rains at the airport caused power-failure which meant that none of the necessary security checks could be performed on those wishing to check-in.

Flight 541 was due to take off at 9.35am. It eventually took off 44 minutes late leaving all of its passengers in the terminal. Power was not restored at the airport until 2.30pm. According to airport officials the problems were caused by flooding in the power-house which supplies the terminal with its electricity. According to the Times of India, one official said that they were helpless as generators and cables became submerged.

After the rainwater receded, staff were able to get into the power-house and start the back-up generators. According to the Times, one passenger, Vishal Vasu, said he could not believe that such power failure would occur at an airport like Vallabhbhai International.

Mr Vasu added that his flight had been cancelled because passengers were unable to complete the check-in stage of their journey. He went on to say he had managed to reach the terminal in the rain, but was shocked to see the disarray at the airport.

A spokesman for Emirates confirmed that due to flooding at the airport, passengers had not been permitted to complete the check-in process by local authorities. He added that as a result flight 541 was forced to fly to Dubai with no passengers on board.