India’s largest airline, IndiGo, faced another day of widespread disruption on Thursday as hundreds of passengers across major cities were left stranded due to continued flight cancellations triggered primarily by a shortage of crew under revised duty norms.
Flight disruptions worsen across major airports
IndiGo’s operations remained heavily impacted in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Ahmedabad, with airports witnessing long queues and frustrated travellers. More than 30 departures from Delhi were scrapped early in the day, while Hyderabad recorded about 33 cancellations. Bengaluru airport confirmed that 73 IndiGo flights were cancelled on Thursday, and Mumbai also saw significant disruptions.
Sources told media that the total cancellations could exceed 170 flights through the day.
Passengers took to social media to highlight severe delays, with some alleging they were kept waiting for more than 12 hours without accommodation or timely updates.
IndiGo cites operational challenges, promises stabilisation
Acknowledging the strain on its vast network of over 2,200 daily flights, IndiGo apologised to customers and attributed the disruptions to multiple factors, including technological issues, winter schedule adjustments, harsh weather, airspace congestion and the new crew rostering rules known as Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL).
The airline said it has initiated “calibrated adjustments” to stabilise operations over the next 48 hours.
Crew shortage under revised FDTL rules behind the crisis
A key driver of the ongoing chaos is the shortage of flight crew, especially pilots, following the implementation of the second phase of updated FDTL norms on November 1.
The revised rules mandate longer rest periods, extend night hours, and reduce allowable night landings. Airlines had initially opposed the changes but were required to comply following a court directive.
According to the aviation regulator, IndiGo cancelled 1,232 flights in November alone — 755 of them due to crew and FDTL constraints.
DGCA seeks answers as OTP plunges
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has summoned IndiGo officials for a review meeting. The regulator said it is assessing the reasons for continuing disruptions and the airline’s recovery plan.
IndiGo’s on-time performance dipped to 67.7% in November, down from 84.1% in October, driven by constraints from crew availability, ATC system failures, airport restrictions and weather factors.