NEW DELHI, Dec 9: IndiGo, the country's largest airline, will have to cut down its operations by 10 per cent, the government has decided in view of the massive crisis sparked by its 2000-plus flight cancellations in recent days.

The government crackdown came despite IndiGo's assertions that its operations are now running smoothly. With the airline operating around 2,200 flights a day, a 10 per cent reduction will involve cancellation of more than 200 flights.

"The ministry considers it necessary to curtail the overall Indigo routes, which will help in stabilizing the airline's operations and lead to reduced cancellations. A curtailment of 10 per cent has been ordered. While abiding with it, IndiGo will continue to cover all its destinations as before," IndiGo said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

"IndiGo has been instructed to comply with all the directives of the Ministry, including fare capping and passenger convenience measures without any exception," the post added.

Earlier today, IndiGo chief Pieter Elbers was summoned to the Civil Aviation Ministry to provide an update, which was followed by the announcement of the government decision.

The DGCA had initially decided on a 5 per cent curtailment of IndiGo's service. The ministry has now upped the figure and the regulator has now come out with a revised notification which has been sent to IndiGo.

In its post, IndiGo also confirmed that 100 per cent of refunds for flights affected till December 6 have been completed. A strict instruction to expedite the completion of the remaining refunds and baggage handover was given.

Ahead of his visit to the ministry, Elbers had made similar claims on a post from his X handle. The airline, he said, is "back on its feet" and thanked customers for their continued support.

The government had earlier warned of strong action against IndiGo. Naidu had told parliament today that the aviation watchdog DGCA has issued showcause notices to the IndiGo brass and started an investigation. "Depending on the outcome, strict and appropriate action as empowered under the aircraft rules and Act will be taken," he said.

DGCA's Notice To IndiGo CEO Over 'Massive' Flight Disruptions

NEW DELHI, Dec 6: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Saturday issued a show-cause notice to IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers after a week-long operational crisis hit the airline’s scheduled flights, causing severe inconvenience and distress to passengers.

In the notice, India's aviation regulator said the primary reason for delays and cancellations appeared to be the airline’s failure to make adequate arrangements for the revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) scheme.

The DGCA observed that the disruption indicated major lapses in planning, oversight and resource management by the airline.

“It has been observed that scheduled flights of IndiGo Airlines have recently faced massive disruptions, resulting in severe inconvenience, hardship and distress to passengers,” the notice read.

“...as the CEO, you are responsible for ensuring effective management of the airline, but you have failed in your duty to make timely arrangements for the conduct of reliable operations and the availability of requisite facilities for passengers,” the notice added.

The DGCA also formed a committee to review the flight disruptions.

In a post on X, Murlidhar Mohol wrote, "DGCA has constituted a four-member committee to review the factors behind the recent large-scale operational disruptions in IndiGo Airlines. The committee will assess gaps in crew planning, operational preparedness and compliance with revised FDTL norms to prevent such incidents in the future."

The authority further said that the situation showed prima facie non-compliance with provisions of aircraft Rules and Civil Aviation Requirements regarding duty periods, rest hours and flight time limitations for crew members.

“It has also been noticed that the primary cause of said flight disruptions is the non-provisioning of adequate arrangements to cater to the revised requirements for smooth implementation of the approved FDTL scheme for the airline," it said.

Govt regulator withdraws pilot rest norms as IndiGo cancellation chaos persists

NEW DELHI, Dec 5: Following the chaos caused by Indio flight cancellations at various airports, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) withdrew the new weekly roster norm about weekly rest for pilots on Friday.

This comes after more than hundreds of IndiGo flights have been cancelled over the past four days. The cancellations have affected major hubs, including Delhi, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad, where hundreds of departures and arrivals have been scrapped in rapid succession.

“In view of the ongoing operational disruptions and representations received from various airlines regarding the need to ensure continuity and stability of operations, the instruction contained in the referenced paragraph that no leave shall be substituted for weekly rest is hereby withdrawn with immediate effect," DGCA said in a notification.

IndiGo has cancelled all its flights from Delhi until midnight and from Chennai until 6 PM. The Gurugram-based airline has attributed the chaos to a “multitude of unforeseen operational challenges,” including minor technical glitches, winter schedule changes, congestion, and adverse weather conditions.

However, aviation insiders and regulators agree that the real blow came from the implementation of Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) - new crew rest and duty-hour rules designed to prevent pilot fatigue.

On Thursday, the carrier admitted to aviation regulators that its operational meltdown stemmed from “misjudgment and planning gaps” in adapting to crew fatigue rules it had two years to prepare for, as its on-time performance (OTP) fell to a historic low of 8.5%. IndiGo commands 60% of India’s domestic market.

IndiGo operates over 2,200 flights a day, nearly double the number of flights operated by Air India. A tiny lapse in planning can become an enormous meltdown: Even a 10% disruption means 200–400 flights are affected, and thousands are stranded.

135 departures and 90 arrivals were cancelled in Delhi alone on Friday. Bengaluru Airport reported 52 arrivals and 50 departures scrapped, while Hyderabad logged 92 cancellations the same day.

Nationwide, more than 600 flights were cancelled in just 48 hours - a record-breaking collapse for the 20-year-old airline.

Aviation Minister Assures Action Against IndiGo

NEW DELHI, Dec 5: IndiGo's operational meltdown is "on the verge of getting resolved", and action against the airline is a question of when, not if, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu has said.

The minister said all other airlines have faced no problems despite the new Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms coming into effect in November. This, he said, made it clear that the "fault" lay with IndiGo.

To a question on when passengers could expect that things would get better, Naidu said, "I can say it is on the verge of getting resolved. The major congestion has happened in the metro airports... and we are seeing all the metro airports, most of them - Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai - they have been cleared right now of all the backlog of passengers that was there for the past two days. The other ones will also be finished by tonight. And Indigo is going to start operations with limited capacity again from tomorrow."

"As the operations settle down, they are going to increase the capacity. But in terms of passengers not facing a problem, you will see that happening from tomorrow. And the full capacity of IndiGo operations getting back will probably take a couple of more days," he assured.

Asked how the ministry and aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) did not pre-empt a situation like this, Naidu was emphatic that this was not the case.

He pointed out that the new FDTL norms, designed to ensure pilots and cabin crew get enough rest, had come into force on November 1, and the ministry and the regulator had been in touch with airlines continuously. The EASA (European Union Aviation Safety Agency), he said, had mandated updates for Airbus A320s last week and that was completed for 323 planes in a short time without causing any disruptions.

"We have been thoroughly monitoring, we have been discussing with the airlines, and we have given them multiple forums to tell us if such a situation is developing. So, that is why we have set up a committee today to inquire into this (the IndiGo disruptions), find the people at fault, and we are going to take action against them. It is being said FDTL guidelines was the major reason, but other airlines have also had to follow (the norms), and they have no issue," the minister said.

"Whatever issue we are talking about is related to Indigo Airlines. So the fault is at Indigo, not at the major level, the ministry level or some other level. If there was some problem regarding the FDTL or something from the ministry, all the airlines should have faced issues, but that is not the case here," he asserted.

Asked whether IndiGo will face action or penalties, Naidu was clear that it would.

"It's not could be, it will be. There will be action on them, because this is not something which we want to entertain. We are very clear that the focus of the ministry is the passenger... It is our job, our responsibility, to ensure that these kinds of incidents don't happen next time. So, we are very, very clear that action is going to follow the inquiry," he said.

IndiGo CEO Assures Normalcy By Dec 15

NEW DELHI, Dec 5: IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers issued a public apology this evening after more than a thousand flights were cancelled today, making it the "most severely impacted day" in terms of cancellations. The biggest airline of the country cancelled "more than half" of its daily number of flights on Friday, said Elbers. He also said that even though the crisis will persist on Saturday, the airline anticipates fewer than 1,000 flight cancellations.

"Full normalisation is expected between December 10 and 15, though IndiGo cautions that recovery will take time due to the scale of operations," the IndiGo CEO said.

IndiGo operates around 2,300 domestic and international flights daily.

Pieter Elbers, while apologising for the major inconvenience due to delays and cancellations, said the situation is a result of various causes.

The crisis at IndiGo stems from new regulations that boost pilots' weekly rest requirements by 12 hours to 48 and allow only two night-time landings per week, down from six. IndiGo has attributed the mass cancellations to "misjudgment and planning gaps".

Elbers also listed three lines of action that the airline will adopt to address the issue.

"Firstly, customer communication and addressing your needs, for this, messages have been sent on social media. And just now, a more detailed communication with information, refunds, cancellations and other customer support measures was sent," he said.

The airline has also stepped up its call centre capacity.

"Secondly, due to yesterday's situation, we had customers stranded mostly at the nation's largest airports. Our focus was for all of them to be able to travel today itself, which will be achieved. For this, we also ask customers whose flights are cancelled not to come to the airports as notifications are sent," the CEO said.

"Thirdly, cancellations were made for today to align our crew and planes to be where they need to start tomorrow morning afresh. Earlier measures of the last few days, regrettable, have proven not to be enough, but we have decided today to reboot all our systems and schedules, resulting in the highest numbers of cancellations so far, but imperative for progressive improvements starting from tomorrow," he added.

As airports witnessed chaotic scenes, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) stepped in to grant IndiGo a temporary exemption from stricter night duty rules for pilots. It also allowed substitution of leaves with a weekly rest period.

550 IndiGo flights cancelled today, airline apologises for widespread disruption

NEW DELHI, Dec 4: The operational inconvenience continues for India's one of the premium carriers, IndiGo, as the airline witnessed cancellations of 550 flights across the nation on Thursday. Of the total flights, at least 191 flights were cancelled in Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, and Hyderabad, leading to chaos at the airports. The carrier has issued a statement on the ongoing crisis.

"The last two days have seen widespread disruption across IndiGo’s network and operations. We extend a heartfelt apology to all our customers and industry stakeholders who have been impacted by these events. IndiGo teams are working diligently and making all efforts with the support of MOCA, DGCA, BCAS, AAI and airport operators to reduce the cascading impact of these delays and restore normalcy. We continue to keep our customers apprised of any changes to their scheduled flights and advise them to check the latest status," IndiGo said.

IndiGo, one of the largest carriers in the country, is grappling with significant operational disruptions in the past few days, and more than 300 flights were cancelled on Thursday, while scores of flights were delayed. In November, the airline witnessed the cancellation of 1,232 flights and severe delays in many flights.

Following the drop in performance, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), decided to launch a probe. It asked the airline to cite reasons behind the drastic decline in operations.

200 IndiGo Flights Cancelled, Ops Hit, Airline Blames 'Flight Duty' Audit

NEW DELHI, Dec 3: IndiGo, India's largest airline, is facing one of its most severe operational breakdowns in recent years, with flight delays and cancellations sweeping across the country.

As per IndiGo's website, the airline operates "well over 2,200 daily flights". Government data from Tuesday shows the airline's on-time performance plunging to just 35 per cent, a dramatic fall for a carrier long associated with punctuality. This implies over 1,400 flights were delayed yesterday.

The turbulence continued on Wednesday, when airports in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad collectively reported close to 200 cancellations by afternoon, triggering widespread disruption for domestic travellers.

"Some IndiGo flights operating from Mumbai Airport may experience delays or cancellations due to airline-related operational issues. Passengers booked with IndiGo are requested to check the latest flight status directly with the airline before heading to the airport," the Mumbai airport said in a statement.

A total of 1,232 flights were cancelled in the month of November.

A significant factor behind the chaos is a sharp shortage of crew, particularly pilots, following the introduction of revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms last month. The new rules mandate more rest hours and humane rosters, but IndiGo has been struggling to realign its massive network accordingly.

Sources said many flights had to be grounded because no cabin crew was available, while others faced delays stretching up to eight hours. With IndiGo commanding more than 60 per cent of the domestic market, the ripple effect from its disrupted schedule has been felt system-wide.

"We acknowledge that IndiGo's operations have been significantly disrupted across the network for the past two days, and we sincerely apologise to our customers for the inconvenience caused. A multitude of unforeseen operational challenges, including minor technology glitches, schedule changes linked to the winter season, adverse weather conditions, increased congestion in the aviation system and the implementation of updated crew rostering rules (Flight Duty Time Limitations) had a negative compounding impact on our operations in a way that was not feasible to be anticipated," IndiGo said in a statement.

Flight duty time limitation, or FDTL norms, cap the number of hours a crew member can be on duty. It limits flying to eight hours a day, 35 hours a week, 125 hours a month and 1,000 hours a year.

The rules also specify mandatory rest periods, requiring that every crew member receive downtime amounting to twice the duration of their flight time, with a minimum of 10 hours of rest within any 24-hour window.

This was brought in by the DGCA to ensure pilots and cabin crew get sufficient rest and are not pushed into fatigue that could compromise safety.

"To contain the disruption and restore stability, we have initiated calibrated adjustments to our schedules. These measures will remain in place for the next 48 hours and will allow us to normalise our operations and progressively recover our punctuality across the network. Our teams are working around the clock to ease customer discomfort and ensure operations stabilise as quickly as possible," the IndiGo statement continued.

"Furthermore, the affected customers are being offered alternate travel arrangements to reach their destinations or refunds, as applicable. We request customers to check the latest flight status at https://www.goindigo.in/check-flight-status.html before heading to the airport. We deeply regret the inconvenience caused and remain fully committed to minimising disruption and supporting our customers through this period," it added.

The impacts were visible in Hyderabad too, where early-morning scenes at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) had long queues and frustrated travellers after 33 IndiGo flights, including both arrivals and departures, were cancelled.

The airport issued an update on X on Wednesday afternoon, stating, "RGIA airport operations remain normal, and passengers are requested to contact IndiGo's customer service team directly for the latest updates on flight status."

IndiGo arrivals from Visakhapatnam, Goa, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai, Madurai, Hubli, Bhopal and Bhubaneswar to Hyderabad were cancelled today, including outbound flights to Delhi, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Hubli and Bhopal.

Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport also faced a wave of disruptions with 42 domestic flights cancelled, including 22 arrivals and 20 departures. Services connecting Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Goa, Kolkata and Lucknow were among those affected.