Deepshika Verma
New Delhi, Dec 4 (UNI) Domestic airline IndiGo on Thursday cancelled more than 300 flights from three major airports, extending disruptions for the third consecutive day. The carrier is struggling to maintain operations due to a shortage of pilots following the introduction of new flight-duty and rest-period rules.
IndiGo’s flight disruptions worsened after the pilots’ association accused the airlines of “creating” the crisis to exert pressure on regulators.
Meanwhile, IndiGo said in a statement that its network had been “significantly disrupted” over the past two days and extended its apologies to affected passengers.
The airline added, “To contain the disruption and restore stability, we have made calibrated adjustments to our schedules. These measures will remain in place for the next 48 hours, allowing us to gradually normalize operations and improve punctuality across the network.”
They also said that their teams are working round the clock to assist passengers with alternative arrangements or refunds as services return to normal.
IndiGo has blamed “an accumulation of several operational challenges” for over 300 of its flights getting cancelled and many delayed over the past two days.
An employee source revealed that in an internal email, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers cited “minor technology glitches, schedule changes, adverse weather, increased congestion in the aviation ecosystem, and the rollout of the newly implemented FDTL norms” as factors affecting operations.
The introduction of new Flight Duty Time Limit (FDTL) norms for pilots on November 1 led to numerous flight cancellations, even though airlines had ample time to prepare for the change, which was initially scheduled to take effect on June 1, 2024.
“These past few days have been challenging for many of our IndiGo customers and colleagues. Serving nearly 380,000 passengers daily, we strive to ensure a positive experience for each of them. Unfortunately, we fell short of that commitment recently, and we have publicly apologised for it,” Pieter Elbers wrote in the email.
Over 300 IndiGo flights were cancelled on Thursday as chaos continued at major airports across India, with the country’s dominant carrier struggling to adapt to the stringent new crew rostering rules.
On Wednesday, IndiGo cancelled at least 150 flights and said it had implemented “calibrated adjustments” to its schedules over the next 48 hours.
“We have overcome difficult times before, turning challenges into successes through our resilience, strength, and unity—and this moment will be no different,” the CEO said, according to the sources.
“Due to the size, scale, and complexity of our network, disruptions escalate quickly and demand interventions across multiple levels. Significant efforts are already underway to address this,” he added.
“Elbers expressed his gratitude to all colleagues in operations—including pilots, cabin crew, OCC, engineers, customer support, digital teams, frontline airport staff, and their leadership—for their tireless efforts in managing the situation, minimising its impact, and restoring stability as quickly as possible.”
He said IndiGo shares its customers’ concerns and anxieties equally. “We are actively reaching out to affected customers and doing everything we can to ease their inconvenience,” he added.
“Our immediate priority is to stabilise our operations and restore punctuality in the coming days—a challenging goal, no doubt. Yet, this is the moment for all of us to unite, demonstrate our capabilities once more, and show the true spirit of IndiGo,” he told the staff.
He cited the recent software update on certain Airbus planes as an example of efficiency and successful execution.
“Just a few days ago, we came together as a united team to accomplish an extraordinary feat—upgrading 200 A320 aircraft in under 24 hours. I am confident that we can tackle this challenge as well. United as one team, we will overcome it and emerge even stronger,” he concluded.
