Travel plans for thousands of passengers were thrown into disarray for a third straight day as IndiGo cancelled more than 200 flights on 4 December and over 500 domestic and international services the day after, even as the airline scrambled to recalibrate schedules and restore pilot availability.
Late on Thursday, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said IndiGo had accepted that it had misjudged crew requirements while implementing the second phase of India’s Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms—fatigue-management regulations that cap flying hours and mandate rest periods for pilots.
According to the regulator, IndiGo informed officials that while it required 2,422 captains in November, it had only 2,357 available. IndiGo warned that cancellations would continue for two to three days as part of “schedule stabilisation efforts” and said operations would be reduced from 8 December to minimise further disruption.
He directed the carrier to normalise operations urgently and ensure no fare increases linked to the crisis.
IndiGo’s share price fell nearly 7 percent between 1 and 5 December.
IndiGo was also asked to submit a detailed hiring and aircraft-induction roadmap, linking future crew recruitment with fleet expansion.
On 5 December, the DGCA issued a one-time written exemption allowing IndiGo to operate A320 aircraft with temporary relief from these provisions until 10 February 2026, subject to mandatory reviews every 15 days and a compliance roadmap within 30 days.
While granting the waiver, the regulator stated that “primary accountability rests with the operator” for inadequate planning.
Also Read: IndiGo’s mass cancellations reveal India’s aviation fatigue crisis
At Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, visuals showed passengers sprawled across staircases and gate areas “like a camp” as 118 IndiGo flights were cancelled in a single day, forcing many to book expensive emergency tickets, with some fares reportedly crossing Rs 23,000 and certain routes sold out altogether.
In Bengaluru, travellers shared clips of flyers lying on the floor and queues stretching across the terminal, with one user alleging they had been at the airport for more than 12 hours without food or water.
The airline announced automatic refunds, fee-free cancellations or rescheduling, hotel accommodation for stranded travellers, food service at terminals and lounge access for senior citizens.
Separately, IndiGo cancelled all domestic flights departing from Delhi on 5 December until 11:59 pm, advising passengers to approach ground staff for baggage retrieval and rebooking assistance.
In an email to employees, screenshots of which were later circulated on social media, Elbers said the disruptions escalated quickly because of the size and complexity of IndiGo’s network, which serves 380,000 passengers a day. He reiterated that operational challenges “negatively compounded” into a cascading failure but expressed confidence that teams would recover performance.
Pointing to IndiGo’s rapid software upgrade of 200 Airbus A320 aircraft in 24 hours in late November, he said the airline would “prove its mettle” again in restoring punctuality.
For now, passengers may continue to face cancellations.
First Published: Dec 05, 2025, 16:49
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