550 cancellations and several delays; IndiGo says operations to be normal by February

New Delhi: Airline operator IndiGo told the DGCA on Thursday that it would stabilise its operations by February 10, 2026, and requested relaxations amid planning gaps in its implementation of the second phase of the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms, leading to over 550 flight cancellations.

Indigo informed the aviation watchdog that there will be more cancellations leading up to December 8, following which the airline would reduce its services. The company acknowledged that misjudgments and planning gaps in implementing the rules caused the disruptions.

Following a high-level meeting to assess the significant flight disruptions, Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu expressed his displeasure with the airline's response to the new FDTL norms, despite having considerable time to make necessary operational alterations.

According to sources, the airline, which typically operates around 2300 flights a day and emphasises punctuality, cancelled over 550 flights on Thursday, and services have been delayed at various airports. This led to a fall in its on-time performance to 19.7 per cent from 35 per cent reported on Tuesday.

The DGCA would strictly monitor the airline's real-time operations and was instructed by the minister to inform passengers of any likely cancellations well in advance. In addition, airfare spikes were observed amid Indigo's cancellations, prompting authorities to ask the company to ensure there would be no increases due to the current disruptions.

The civil aviation ministry issued a statement confirming that officers have been deployed to IndiGo's operational control centres for continuous oversight.

IndiGo has also sought certain exemptions from the specific FDTL requirements for A320 flight operations until February 10, 2026, in an attempt to normalise operations, which the pilot community may not welcome. These FDTL relaxations sought by the airline would be reviewed by the DGCA.

Speaking to regulators, IndiGo argued that the availability of captains and first officers for its A320 family planes is 2,357 and 2,194, respectively, for December, while only 2,422 captains and 2,153 first officers were required in November. In October, the requirements for captains were 2,186, and for first officers, 1,948. This indicates a rise following the implementation of the second phase of the FDTL norms. 

The resulting shortage of crew amid rising requirements underscores the ongoing disruptions, along with the new FDTL, which has reduced the number of night landings per pilot and disrupted nighttime operations.

Informing the regulator that the crew requirements exceeded their anticipation, the airline provided data, including projections, and notified that corrective actions are underway with flight operations to be stabilised and fully restored by February 10, 2026. However, more cancellations are expected in the days leading up to it. To combat disruptions, the airline will resort to reduced operations from December 8 onwards, as per a statement issued by the DGCA.

Alongside immediate stabilisation measures, the airline is expected to submit detailed progress reports every 15 days. The regulator has also asked the airline to submit a detailed roadmap covering projected crew recruitment. On Thursday, a DGCA team inspected Delhi airport's Terminal 1, where the airline has substantial operations.

"The team observed that IndiGo's passenger-handling manpower was inadequate to manage disruption-induced crowding," DGCA said, adding that it has instructed the airline to urgently increase manpower as well as strengthen passenger-support services at all affected terminals.

The Airline Pilots' Association of India (ALPA) responded, saying that the operational disruptions at IndiGo due to understaffing are a result of poor resource planning by major airlines. It also pointed to possible efforts by the airline to pressurise the regulator, the DGCA, to dilute the new flight duty time limitation norms.

Pilots' body Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has alleged that IndiGo, despite receiving a two-year preparatory window before the full implementation of new flight duty and rest period norms for cockpit crew, "inexplicably" adopted a "hiring freeze".

The airline's CEO, Pieter Elbers, told staff that normalising operations and restoring punctuality will not be an "easy target".
(With PTI inputs)