DGCA stations staff at IndiGo HQ, orders on-site checks at 11 airports

Aviation regulator DGCA has deployed its personnel inside IndiGo's corporate headquarters in Gurgaon as part of an expanded oversight effort, with the airline continuing to cancel flights despite its assertion earlier this week that operations had returned to normal levels.

- TIGHTENING SCRUTINY OF AIRLINE

The move follows days of widespread disruption that have affected tens of thousands of passengers across the country.

According to a two-page order, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation has set up an oversight team comprising eight senior captains. Two of these captains, along with two government officials, will be stationed at IndiGo's headquarters to monitor cancellation trends, crew deployment patterns, unplanned leave, and routes hit by shortages of cockpit and cabin staff. "Both these teams will submit a daily report," the regulator said.

The inspections will extend beyond the airline's head office. DGCA officials have been instructed to conduct immediate onsite assessments at 11 domestic airports.

The order states that the assigned officers will visit their respective airports within the next two to three days and file detailed reports to the Director of Operations for the flight safety department in New Delhi within 24 hours of each inspection.