As the government began to take regulatory action after the massive IndiGo fiasco that left thousands of passengers in the lurch, the airline said that over 95 per cent of network connectivity has been re-established as it can operate to 135 out of the existing 138 destinations in operations.
IndiGo’s flight disruption entered its 6th day on Sunday, primarily due to an unexpected pilot shortage caused by planning shortcomings. The company urged customers to check the latest flight status before proceeding to the airport and to contact customer support for refund assistance. The company also assured that the flight disruptions are expected to ease soon, with the airline aiming to operate nearly 1,500 flights by December 7, 2025, and resume normal operations. IndiGo has restored connectivity to 135 out of 138 destinations and is working to reduce cancellations further.
IndiGo flight cancellations to continue on Sunday?
The airline’s teams are working to stabilise their network, systems, and rosters to handle more flights with improved stability. This comes after five days of widespread cancellations, with over 1,000 flights cancelled on Friday and 850 on Saturday, leaving thousands stranded. As the government began to take regulatory action after the massive IndiGo fiasco that left thousands of passengers in the lurch, the airline said that over 95 per cent of network connectivity has been re-established as it is able to operate to 135 out of the existing 138 destinations in operations.
In an updated statement that while addressing the recent disruptions in its network, the airline said, “we had cancelled a significant number of flights and operated little above 700 flights yesterday connecting 113 destinations. The main objective was to reboot the network, systems, and rosters so that we could start afresh today with higher number of flights, improved stability, and there are some early signs of improvement.” The airline further said that it was “on its way to operate over 1,500 flights by end of day”.
“While we understand that we have a long way to go, we are committed to build back the trust of our customers. We would like to thank all our partners and government agencies for their constant support and guidance,” said IndiGo.
IndiGo chaos: DGCA issues show-cause notice to airline, caps airfare
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Saturday issued a show cause notice to IndiGo, seeking an explanation from the airline within 24 hours over massive recent flight disruptions that caused severe inconvenience, hardship and distress to passengers. The DGCA stated, ““it has been noticed that the primary cause of said flight disruptions is non-provisioning of adequate arrangements to cater to the revised requirements for smooth implementation of the approved FDTL scheme for the airline.”
Further, the Ministry of Civil Aviation on Saturday imposed a country-wide cap on domestic airfares in order to contain the sharp and sudden surge in ticket prices following massive disruptions at IndiGo. As per the ministry’s order, airlines have been prohibited from charging above the newly fixed maximum limits, which have been introduced in public interest, until flight operations return to normal. The cap ranges from Rs 7,500 to Rs 18,000 depending on the length of the route.
For flights of up to 500 km, the maximum permissible fare is Rs 7,500. The cap for sectors between 500 and 1,000 km is Rs 12,000. Routes between 1,000 and 1,500 km have a ceiling of Rs 15,000, while fares on flights covering over 1,500 km cannot exceed Rs 18,000.
(With inputs from agencies)
