Even today, more than 200 Indigo flights canceled across the country, outcry at airports

The country’s largest airline Indigo is once again in the grip of huge chaos. On Thursday (December 4), more than 200 flights were canceled across the country, with 191 flights confirmed canceled in Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Hyderabad alone. These sudden operational disruptions put passengers in great distress and created chaos at major airports.

DGCA has called IndiGo officials for a meeting at 2 pm today, while the aviation regulator is already investigating the decline in the airline’s performance. Although IndiGo has claimed that it is not aware of any investigation, only some information has been sought.

Where and how many flights were cancelled?

Besides, 24 flights were delayed in Kolkata, including two international flights to Singapore and Siem Reap. Pune airport said 11 flights were grounded and 19 flights were delayed by more than an hour.

On Wednesday also, Indigo had canceled more than 100 flights. In November alone the airline canceled 1,232 flights, pointing to deep structural problems within its network.

The company said its operations were impacted by “unexpected and multifaceted challenges” over the past two days, including technical glitches, schedule adjustments due to winter, weather, airport congestion, new crew rostering, etc.

Many passengers said that despite waiting for hours, no clear information was given by the airline. One passenger wrote, “The flight has been delayed for hours and there is no information. People are getting worried.” Another said, “12-24 hours delay… no solution. This is serious.” Grounded IndiGo planes have put pressure on parking capacity at various airports, leading to delays in flights of Air India, Akasa Air and SpiceJet.

The Federation of India Pilots (FIP) said the current crisis is a result of the airline’s lean staffing strategy and hiring freeze. ALPA India also demanded DGCA to realistically assess the number of pilots available with airlines before awarding slots.

Amidst all this, DGCA has said that it is working with the company to normalize the situation and ensure minimum inconvenience to the passengers. This widespread mismanagement at the country’s largest airline appears to be setting the stage for further investigation and corrective action in the coming days.

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