Aviation Minister warns IndiGo against airfare hike as airline says flight operations to normalise by Feb 2026
IndiGo, the country's largest airline, is grappling with significant operational disruptions in the past few days, and more than 500 flights were cancelled on Thursday across the country.
The Civil Aviation Ministry and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) conducted a detailed review meeting after IndiGo reported major operational disruptions and an unusually high volume of flight cancellations across its network since late November.
Union Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Ram Mohan Naidu assessed the situation with senior ministry officials and IndiGo’s top management, directing the airline and all aviation authorities to take immediate measures to support passengers and restore normal operations. The ministry is maintaining a close watch on developments, according to a DGCA statement.
Ensure airfares do not spike
During the meeting, IndiGo presented data on cancellations and attributed the disruption to challenges in crew planning and implementation of the revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms, along with seasonal weather-related constraints.
Naidu expressed clear displeasure regarding the manner in which the situation has been handled by the airline, and stressed that ample preparatory time had been available to ensure a seamless transition to the new regulatory requirements, according to an official statement.
"In addition, the Civil Aviation Minister has also held a meeting with senior officers of the Airport Authority of India and instructed AAI to inform all airport directors that they should constantly monitor the situation and provide all support to stranded passengers. He also directed DGCA to closely monitor the airfares during the flight disruptions/cancellations," according to the released statement.
The airline has been instructed by the minister to proactively inform passengers of any likely cancellations well in advance and to ensure that all necessary facilities, including hotel accommodation where required, are provided promptly to minimise inconvenience.
Meanwhile, Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), in a detailed review meeting chaired by the Director General (Civil Aviation), flagged concerns that IndiGo has been experiencing a sharp rise in cancellations, reaching approximately 170-200 flights per day, which is substantially higher than normal.
Flight operations to normalise by Feb 2026
IndiGo has informed the aviation regulator DGCA that it will curtail flight operations starting December 8, and that normal, stable operations are expected to be fully restored by February 10, 2026.
The airline said corrective measures are currently underway, but warned that additional cancellations are likely in the coming days.
The airline will reduce flight operations from December 8 to minimise disruptions.
DGCA seeks detailed roadmap
The DGCA has been asked to conduct strict real-time monitoring of IndiGo's operations, including field inspections at major airports, with special emphasis on passenger-handling arrangements and timely communication during delays and cancellations.
DGCA has also asked IndiGo to submit a detailed roadmap covering projected crew recruitment viz-a-viz induction of aircraft as well as the plan for crew training, roster restructuring, safety-risk assessments, and mitigation measures. "IndiGo is directed to submit the FDTL relaxations required to normalise the flight operations for DGCA review," the statement said.
On Thursday, the country's largest airline IndiGo cancelled more than 550 domestic and international flights, and services were delayed at various airports as operational disruptions continued for the third straight day, impacting travel plans of hundreds of passengers.
According to news agency PTI sources that more than 550 flights were cancelled at different airports, including 172 flights at the Delhi airport, on Thursday. There were at least 118 flight cancellations at the Mumbai airport, 100 at Bangalore, 75 at Hyderabad, 35 at Kolkata, 26 at Chennai, and 11 at Goa. Flight cancellations were reported at other airports also.
The airline, which generally operates around 2,300 flights daily and presents its punctuality as a hallmark, recorded an on time performance of 19.7 per cent on Wednesday, a steep fall from 35 per cent reported on Tuesday.
On a day when the civil aviation ministry and watchdog DGCA held a meeting with senior IndiGo officials to take stock of the situation as well as the mitigation plans, the airline's CEO, Pieter Elbers, told the staff that normalising operations and bringing back punctuality will not be an "easy target".
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