DGCA to probe causes behind operational disruptions
New Delhi/Mumbai, Dec 5: IndiGo cancelled over 1,000 flights on Friday and said operations are expected to normalise in the next 10 days, as the country’s largest airline received flight duty norms relaxation from watchdog DGCA, which will probe the disruptions that have impacted thousands of passengers for four straight days.
As a large number of flights got cancelled and delayed, chaos continued at major airports across the country, with frustrated passengers scrambling for updates and searching for their baggage. Many passengers vented out their anger on social media, and airfares also sailed northwards for many routes.
The operations of IndiGo, which controls about two-thirds of the country’s domestic traffic and generally operates around 2,300 flights daily, failed to plan properly for the new flight duty norms that provide for increased rest periods and lesser night landings.
With air travel chaos continuing for the fourth consecutive day, DGCA on Friday provided temporary exemption from the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms, including on night landings and definition of night time, to the airline, which had sought the relaxations to normalise its operations.
The airline was required to implement the FDTL norms from November 1.
Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu on Friday said various operational measures, including keeping new flight duty norms in abeyance, will help address the IndiGo flight disruptions, and complete restoration of services is expected in next three days.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has constituted a four-member panel to ascertain the reasons that have led to the disruptions and also said that prima facie, the situation indicates deficiencies in internal oversight, operational preparedness, and compliance planning, “warranting an independent examination”.
The FDTL relaxations have been provided for only IndiGo’s A320 family planes, which account for the majority of its fleet, till February 10, 2026, officials said.
“This exemption has been granted solely to facilitate operational stabilisation and in no way amounts to dilution of safety requirements. During this period, DGCA would review after every fifteen days, the action taken by IndiGo to address the situation including hiring of adequate crew to ensure FDTL compliance,” the civil aviation ministry said in a statement. (PTI)
