New Delhi: On Wednesday, December 3, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) opened a formal investigation into IndiGo after reports of widespread operational disruptions led to at least 150 flight cancellations and large-scale delays across major airports.
The regulator has summoned the airline for an explanation and a concrete mitigation plan as thousands of passengers faced cascading schedule breakdowns.
DGCA seeks answers over delay
Officials said cancellations were reported in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and several other cities. Delhi saw 67 cancellations, Bengaluru 42, Mumbai 32 and Hyderabad more than 30 across two days. The situation worsened after a global outage of the Amadeus check-in software affected multiple carriers, including Akasa Air, Air India and SpiceJet, for about an hour.
The DGCA added that IndiGo had cancelled 1,232 flights in November, with 755 linked to Flight Duty Time Limitations, which cap pilot working hours to curb fatigue. The airline has been directed to appear at the DGCA headquarters with a detailed account of the causes of the latest disruption and an outline of measures to restore stability.
IndiGo apologises
IndiGo has apologised to passengers and attributed the breakdown to a combination of minor technical issues, winter schedule changes, adverse weather, congestion across the aviation network and FDTL related constraints. It said it has implemented calibrated adjustments to its schedule for the next 48 hours.
The Federation of Indian Pilots rejected IndiGo’s FDTL explanation, saying that the Delhi High Court mandated regulations did not trigger the cancellations and noting that other airlines had prepared adequately. The body alleged a long running manpower shortage due to hiring freezes, non poaching arrangements, pay stagnation and attempts to buy back pilot leave. It also said the airline expanded its winter schedule without recruiting or training additional crew despite seasonal fog related challenges.
The pilots’ federation cautioned that repeated disruptions could be perceived as pressure tactics rather than operational shortcomings. It also urged the regulator to approve peak season schedules only after airlines demonstrate sufficient staffing under the new FDTL norms and suggested reallocating slots to other carriers if IndiGo continues to fall short.
