IndiGo attributes chaos to 5 factors; govt vows to set an example

IndiGo submitted its reply to the DGCA’s show cause notices on Monday evening, shortly before the extended deadline expired.

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‘The notices had been issued last Saturday after the regulator sought explanations for sweeping cancellations that began in early December and culminated on December 5 when over 1,000 flights, nearly half of the airline's roster for the day, were affected. While acknowledging the chaos caused to passengers, IndiGo said it was realistically not possible to identify precise causes within the notice period and sought more time, pointing out that the DGCA manual normally allows 15 days for such responses.

‘The airline attributed its troubles to what it described as the compounding impact of five coinciding factors. These included minor technical issues, schedule shifts linked to the onset of winter, adverse weather that led to congestion across the aviation system, the updated Flight Duty Time Limitation rules that came into force on November 1, 2025, and the operational adjustments needed under the new roster framework.

‘According to the aviation ministry, IndiGo told the regulator that it had been engaging with officials for months about difficulties in implementing the Phase 2 FDTL rules and had sought variations or extensions before the revised norms took effect.