New Delhi: The crisis at IndiGo continues to escalate as the airline struggles to stabilize its operations. On Tuesday, more than 550 flights were abruptly cancelled, creating widespread disruption for passengers across the country. IndiGo has warned that additional cancellations are expected today as well.
The chaos stems from IndiGo’s failure to properly implement the new crew duty time regulations, which require pilots to receive longer rest periods under revised government rules. Due to planning lapses and understaffing, IndiGo has informed the DGCA that it will begin cutting flight schedules from December 8, and full normalcy may not return until February 10, 2026. Until then, the airline will operate with reduced services, though efforts are underway to ease the situation.
Admitting to miscalculations, IndiGo stated that it failed to adequately assess crew strength needed to meet the new norms. Meanwhile, the DGCA is expected to grant temporary regulatory relief to help the airline manage the crisis.
The Civil Aviation Minister expressed dissatisfaction with IndiGo’s handling of the situation, directing the airline to ensure that the turmoil does not lead to fare hikes. The DGCA has also been instructed to closely monitor daily operations across the network.
Major airports—including Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Goa—reported numerous cancellations. IndiGo acknowledged that shortcomings in planning and implementation, along with insufficient manpower, triggered the large-scale disruptions.
