CHENNAI: Despite measures announced by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation that were expected to assuage the ongoing operational crisis at IndiGo, there was little respite for air passengers who had booked tickets with the country’s largest carrier as chaos, frustration and uncertainty continued at Chennai airport on Saturday.
While conditions were less volatile than Friday, with some flights finally taking off, relief remained limited for stranded travellers, many of whom had spent hours clinging to the hope of reaching their destinations.
Chennai Airport spokesperson said 52 outbound and 44 inbound services were cancelled, leaving large numbers of passengers in limbo on Saturday. However, the details of IndiGo airline’s inbound and outbound flight a day to and from Chennai airport could not be ascertained. The airline attempted to accommodate some travellers on alternative flights, often routing them through different cities from those originally booked. Queues, however, remained long.
Teresa, a teacher at the American International School, who was travelling from Mumbai with a planned connection to Kazakhstan, said, “I was lucky. The airline accommodated me on an alternative flight to Delhi, from where I can catch a connecting flight to Kazakhstan,” she said.
Others were not as fortunate. Sivasankaran, a resident of Cuddapah in Andhra Pradesh, said his flight to Mumbai — from where he had a connecting service to Kuwait — was cancelled. “I don’t have a place to stay, and food is expensive. I don’t know what to do,” said the blue-collar worker.
Flights to and from major metros — including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Kolkata — continued to be the most affected. Several inbound services from northern and eastern cities were cancelled early in the day, followed by disruptions to flights from southern destinations such as Bengaluru, Coimbatore and Hyderabad. Evening arrivals from Lucknow, Bhubaneswar and Goa were also impacted.
Inside the terminal, passenger movement remained uneven. While crowds were thinner than on Friday, long queues persisted at the IndiGo counter outside the departure terminal as travellers sought clarity on rebookings and refunds. Police personnel continued to be deployed to manage crowd flow and prevent flashpoints.
With capacity constrained, ticket prices on competing airlines continued to surge sharply on several routes, leaving passengers with limited and costly alternatives for same-day travel.
Responding to reports of steep fare increases, an Air India spokesperson on Saturday said economy-class airfares on non-stop domestic flights have been proactively capped since December 4, both on Air India and Air India Express services.
“We are aware of screenshots of last-minute itineraries involving one-stop or two-stop flights or combinations of economy, premium economy and business class cabins on third-party platforms. While it is not technically possible to cap all such permutations, we are engaging with these platforms to ensure oversight,” the spokesperson said.