India’s aviation sector remained under severe strain on Saturday as IndiGo’s operations failed to stabilise, leading to hundreds of fresh cancellations across major airports. The disruptions, now in their fifth straight day, left thousands of passengers stranded and intensified scrutiny from the civil aviation regulator.
IndiGo has cancelled over 400 flights from four major airports on Saturday.
Of these, 124 flights (63 departures and 61 arrivals) were cancelled at Bengaluru airport and 109 flights -- 51 departures and 58 arrivals -- at Mumbai airport, they said.
The number of cancellations at Delhi airport stood at 106, including 54 departures and 52 arrivals, the sources said, adding that 66 flights have been cancelled by IndiGo at Hyderabad airport.
Although airport authorities claimed operations were “gradually resuming,” queues, delays and crowding persisted across terminals nationwide. Many passengers reached airports only to discover that their flights had been delayed or cancelled. With alternative seats on other carriers filling rapidly, airfares shot up sharply, compounding the chaos for urgent travellers.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation, which on Friday granted IndiGo temporary relaxation from new night-duty and weekly-rest requirements for pilots, is now supervising a high-level inquiry into the airline’s failure to maintain operational readiness. The four-member panel has been directed to examine lapses in crew management, compliance planning and internal oversight, and submit its report within two weeks.
The DGCA team — comprising Joint Director General Sanjay K Brahmane, Deputy Director General Amit Gupta, Senior Flight Operations Inspector Kapil Manglik and Flight Operations Inspector Lokesh Rampal — has been tasked with submitting its report within two weeks.
Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu reiterated that IndiGo’s handling of crew schedules and its preparedness for the DGCA’s new Flight Duty Time Limitation rules triggered the crisis. He said the ministry had constituted a committee to determine responsibility for the collapse and assured that “strict action” would follow.
IndiGo’s top management has maintained that operations will stabilise only gradually, with full normalcy expected closer to mid-December. However, with cancellations continuing for the fifth consecutive day, concerns are rising over the airline’s ability to manage the backlog and restore public confidence.
As the weekend rush builds and airports brace for more passenger load, authorities are advising flyers to check the latest flight status before heading to terminals, even as uncertainty prevails over how quickly India’s largest airline can regain control of its schedule.
A petition has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking urgent judicial intervention into the disruptions reported LawBeat. Filed by advocate Aman Banka on behalf of affected passengers, the plea urges the Chief Justice of India to take suo motu cognisance and constitute a special bench for immediate hearing.
It also seeks directions for the Ministry of Civil Aviation and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to submit detailed status reports on the causes of the operational collapse. The petition describes the situation as a “humanitarian crisis,” citing serious hardship for passengers travelling for medical emergencies, exams, official work or urgent obligations, and argues that the disruptions, coupled with poor communication and lack of support at airports , amount to a violation of fundamental rights.
Meanwhile, the pilots' body, Airlines' Pilots Association (ALPA) India, has taken a "strong" objection to the DGCA's "selective and unsafe" relief to IndiGo, saying that the relaxations have not just "destroyed regulatory parity but also placed millions of passengers at "heightened risk".
Following the meeting convened by the Ministry of Civil Aviation with ALPA India and other pilot associations on December 5, the Ministry announced that it has decided to place the implementation of the revised FDTL CAR in abeyance.
"ALPA India expresses its deep concern that this step directly contradicts the Court's directions, which mandate the enforcement of fatigue-mitigation standards rooted in aviation science," the Association said in a statement late Friday.
It stated that keeping the FDTL in abeyance not only undermines judicial authority but also heightens the risk to pilots and passengers by delaying essential fatigue protections.
"We urge the (Civil Aviation) Ministry and the regulator to uphold the Court's order in both letter and spirit and to prioritise the safety of the pilots and travelling public above all commercial considerations," ALPA India said.
It is worth noting that IndiGo was the first carrier to oppose the new FDTL norms for pilots when they were introduced in January 2024, with a March implementation timeline.
It had been argued that the airlines require more time to put in place due to additional crew requirements. The latest FDTL norms, which entail increased weekly rest periods to 48 hours, extended night hours, and limiting the number of night landings to only two, as against six earlier, were also initially opposed by other domestic airlines, including Tata Group-owned Air India.
But they were subsequently rolled out by the DGCA following the Delhi High Court's directives, albeit with a delay of over one year, in a phased manner, and with certain variations for airlines like IndiGo and Air India.
While the first phase of these FDTL norms came into force in July, the second phase, which reduced the number of night landings from six to two earlier, was implemented from November 1.
The norms were originally to be put in place in March 2024.
(With inputs from PTI)