The reason?

They had to change seats after complaining about sitting next to a farting dog on the 13-hour flight.

It was in June when Gill and Warren Press had their seats next to a smelly dog on the Singapore Airlines aircraft, Fox Business reported.

Warren overheard the dog’s owner telling another passenger that he becomes nervous on planes and needs the pet by his side.

Surprised to be seating next to a person with a dog, the Presses sought assistance from a flight attendant and also complained that the dog was occupying Warren’s leg space, Insider reported.

The crew member informed the couple that the only vacant seats were towards the back of the aircraft, in the economy section.

The couple initially declined the offer as they had paid for premium economy seats.

Sometime later, though, the dog started to fart and the couple eventually moved to economy class seats.

On arrival at their destination, the couple reached out to the airline about their ordeal.

Singapore Airlines issued an apology and two $73 gift vouchers, but the couple found it inadequate compensation as they had to change seats from premium economy to economy.

The airline then offered travel vouchers of $200 each, but the Presses rejected it again and demanded a full fare refund.

The airline ultimately gave in and agreed to refund the fare difference in the seats.

Having ‘won’, the couple plans to donate the money to an organisation that helps match vision-impaired people with service dogs.

Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya M Scindia joined the event virtually through videoconferencing and also inaugurated the newly-constructed Utkela Airport along with the CM on the occasion. Commerce and Transport Minister Tukuni Sahu and Public Enterprises, SSEPD and Science and Technology Minister Ashok Panda were also present at Bhubaneswar airport.

“Glad to flag off first flight between Bhubaneswar and newly inaugurated Utkela Airport in Kalahandi district. The airport has added yet another golden chapter to Odisha’s aviation sector. It will boost connectivity, commerce and tourism, fulfilling aspirations of people of the region,” Naveen tweeted.

It is the fifth airport in Odisha after BPIA, Jharsuguda, Jeypore and Rourkela to start flight operations. With this, a long standing demand for flight operation to Utkela has been fulfilled and the travel time is 1 hour 15 minutes. The presence of attractive places and tourist destinations like Manikeswari Temple, Phurli Jharan Waterfall, Rabandhara waterfall, Khariapat wildlife sanctuary will attract many tourists after air connectivity at Utkela. Senior doctors, professors of Saheed Rendo Majhi Medical College and Hospital, Bhawanipatna, Kalahandi and businessmen from the city will fly out and in frequently, a CMO release said.

Kalahandi is considered as a commercial hub of eestern Odisha which has seen a rapid growth in its population and industry. The flight operation in this route will boost the industry and tourism sector, it added.

According to its official website, the airline will connect Utkela to Bhubaneswar with 2X weekly flights on Tuesday and Thursday. The flight will take off from BPIA in Bhubaneswar at 7.15 am and arrive in Utkela at 8.25 am. It will leave the new airport at 8.50 am and land at Bhubaneswar at 10 am. The introductory one-way fare was fixed at Rs 999 per passenger. The ticket price comes to around Rs 1049.

All tickets between Utkela and Bhubaneswar are sold out for the month of September, according to the website.

Utkela Airport is among the airstrips listed under the regional connectivity scheme UDAN. The state government has spent around Rs 162 crore for acquisition of land, construction of runway and terminal building for the airport in Bhawanipatna. Director General Civil Aviation Monday (DGCA) issued the licence to start flight operations on August 7.

Earlier, Utkela Airstrip was used only on handful occasions for flight operations during the arrival of dignitaries.

The flight operations will commence as the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) granted the requisite license to the Utkela Airport on August 7.

According to sources, IndiaOne Air will provide air service between Utkela Airport and Biju Patnaik International Airport (BPIA) in Bhubaneswar in the first phase. The service is likely to be extended to Raipur in Chhattisgarh in the subsequent phase.

IndiaOne Air will reportedly engage a nine-seater aircraft to start air service between Utkela Airport and BPIA.

The state government has spent around Rs 162 crore for acquisition of land, construction of runway and terminal building for Utkela Airport in Bhawanipatna.