IndiGo admits to gaps as 200 more flights cancelled

Delays and cancellations at airports in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and elsewhere triggered a flurry of social media posts from stranded passengers struggling to get clarity on revised departure schedules.

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Shares of IndiGo fell as much as 3.4 per cent on Thursday and are down 6 per cent for the week. In a separate statement, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said Minister Ram Mohan Naidu chaired a meeting with IndiGo’s senior executives and DGCA officials.

“Naidu expressed clear displeasure regarding the manner in which the situation has been handled by the airline, and stressed that ample preparatory time had been available to ensure a seamless transition to the new regulatory requirements. The minister further directed IndiGo to urgently normalise operations and to ensure that there is no increase in airfares due to the current situation,” the ministry stated.

The DGCA’s revised FDTL rules entered their second and final phase on November 1, bringing into effect seven clauses that had been deferred during the July rollout. Phase IT introduced tighter caps on a pilot's cumulative flying hours, stricter limits on duty periods during the early-morning “window of circadian low”, and a hard ceiling on the number of consecutive night duties. The DGCA, in its statement on Thursday night, said IndiGo executives told the regulator that the airline in November required 2,422 captains but had only 2,357 available. During the same period, it needed 2,153 first officers but had 2,194 on hand.