IndiGo Faces Operational Challenges Amid Flight Disruptions

IndiGo is currently facing significant operational challenges, leading to widespread flight cancellations and delays. CEO Pieter Elbers has acknowledged the airline's failure to meet service commitments and emphasized the need to stabilize operations. The disruptions have been attributed to a combination of technical issues, adverse weather, and new regulations. With over 300 flights canceled, the DGCA is investigating the situation. The airline is working to normalize its services while addressing crew shortages and operational hurdles. This situation raises concerns about the airline's resource planning and its impact on customer experience.

By Narendra Chaudhary Dec 4, 2025, 19:40 IST

IndiGo's Commitment to Service Under Scrutiny

Mumbai, Dec 4: In light of significant flight disruptions, IndiGo's CEO Pieter Elbers acknowledged on Thursday that the airline has not met its service expectations. He emphasized that the immediate focus is on stabilizing operations and restoring punctuality, a task he described as challenging.

In a communication to employees, Elbers recognized the difficulties faced by both passengers and staff in recent days.

“We cater to nearly 380,000 customers daily and aim to provide each one with a positive experience. Unfortunately, we have not fulfilled that commitment recently, and we sincerely apologize,” he stated.

Elbers attributed the disruptions to a mix of operational challenges, including minor technical issues, schedule adjustments, adverse weather conditions, congestion in the aviation sector, and the introduction of new Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) regulations, which collectively led to widespread operational issues.

“Given the extensive and complex nature of our network, these disruptions can escalate quickly, necessitating interventions at various levels. We are actively working to normalize operations and restore punctuality in the upcoming days,” he added.

Earlier, the airline canceled over 300 domestic and international flights across major airports in Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore, continuing operational disruptions for a third consecutive day, which affected numerous travelers.

Many IndiGo flights also experienced delays at different airports due to crew shortages and schedule adjustments, impacting the airline's reputation for punctuality.

Following a drop in its On Time Performance (OTP) to 19.7% from 35% on December 2, the airline continued to face challenges, with over 300 flights canceled by the afternoon.

At least 95 flights were canceled at Delhi airport, 85 at Mumbai, 70 at Hyderabad, and 50 at Bangalore, with additional cancellations reported at other locations.

Sources indicated that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is meeting with airline officials to address the ongoing situation.

During late afternoon trading, IndiGo's shares fell by more than 3% to Rs 5,417.90 on the BSE.

On Wednesday, the DGCA announced it was investigating the flight disruptions and requested IndiGo to provide explanations for the current issues and its strategies to minimize cancellations and delays.

The airline has reportedly been experiencing a severe crew shortage since the second phase of the FDTL regulations was implemented.

IndiGo is making careful adjustments to its schedules to stabilize operations.

Meanwhile, the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has claimed that despite having a two-year preparation period before fully implementing the new flight duty and rest period regulations, IndiGo has inexplicably imposed a hiring freeze.

The pilots' group has urged the DGCA not to approve seasonal flight schedules for airlines unless they have sufficient staff to operate safely and reliably under the new FDTL regulations.

The Airline Pilots' Association of India (ALPA) stated that the operational disruptions at IndiGo due to crew shortages highlight a failure in proactive resource planning by leading airlines and suggested there may be attempts to pressure the DGCA to relax the new flight duty time limitation regulations.

In a statement on Wednesday, IndiGo acknowledged various challenges, including "minor technical glitches, winter season schedule changes, adverse weather, increased congestion in the aviation system, and the implementation of updated crew rostering rules (FDTL), which collectively had an unforeseen negative impact on our operations."