India's aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has launched an investigation into IndiGo, the country's largest airline, following widespread flight cancellations and delays. The disruptions, attributed to a shortage of crew and a combination of other factors, have left passengers stranded at airports and prompted a wave of criticism on social media.
The DGCA has requested IndiGo to submit a detailed report explaining the reasons behind the operational breakdown and to present a mitigation plan to prevent future disruptions. The airline has also been asked to appear at DGCA headquarters to discuss the situation and their proposed solutions.
On Wednesday, numerous IndiGo flights were canceled or delayed across major airports in India, including Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru. While specific numbers vary across reports, it is estimated that at least 150 flights were canceled, causing significant inconvenience to travelers. The situation had been deteriorating since Tuesday, with the airline's on-time performance plummeting to 35% compared to an average of 75.6% for other Indian carriers.
IndiGo has attributed the disruptions to a combination of factors, 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". The airline has "sincerely apologized" for the inconvenience caused and has initiated "calibrated adjustments" to its schedule for the next 48 hours to stabilize operations and progressively recover punctuality across its network. These adjustments include offering affected customers alternative travel arrangements or refunds.
A significant factor contributing to the crew shortage is the implementation of the second phase of Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL). These new regulations, which came into effect in November, mandate increased weekly rest periods for pilots and stricter limits on night duties. Specifically, the rules require pilots to have 48 hours of weekly rest and reduce the number of permitted night landings from six to two. While these rules aim to improve crew welfare and flight safety, they have also created operational challenges for airlines, particularly IndiGo, which relies heavily on night operations.
According to data submitted by IndiGo to the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA), the airline canceled 1,232 flights in November. A large portion of these cancellations, 755 flights, were attributed to crew and FDTL compliance issues. The remaining cancellations were due to air traffic control (ATC) failures (92 flights), airport/airspace restrictions (258 flights), and other reasons (127 flights). The DGCA acknowledged that many of these factors are beyond the airline's direct control.
Adding to IndiGo's challenges, sources suggest that the airline has been facing a shortage of both cockpit and cabin crew, exacerbated by a recent recruitment drive by Emirates, a major international airline, in Delhi and Mumbai. Furthermore, IndiGo's on-time performance has suffered, dropping from 84.1% in October to 67.7% in November.
In response to the crisis, IndiGo stated that it is working to strengthen crew planning and rostering, enhance coordination with Air Traffic Control and airports, manage capacity constraints, and improve turnaround and disruption-management processes. The airline has also been criticized for allegedly halting new pilot hiring and slowing down the upgrade of first officers to captains in an effort to control costs, despite concerns about low pilot utilization rates.
