IndiGo, India’s largest airline by market share and daily flight operations, has formally acknowledged that its recent wave of widespread disruptions and cancellations resulted primarily from internal miscalculations and planning gaps in implementing the second phase of the revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) regulations. These disruptions, which began surfacing in late November, led to passenger distress across the country. As the situation intensified, the airline sought time until February 10, 2026, to fully stabilise its operations and realign manpower with regulatory requirements.

The acknowledgement was made during a high-level review meeting chaired by civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu, who met senior officials from the Ministry of Civil Aviation, representatives from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the Airport Authority of India (AAI), and senior members of IndiGo’s leadership team. The meeting was convened in the wake of sharp increases in flight delays, cancellations, and gridlock at major airports.

Following the review, the ministry issued a detailed statement outlining a multi-pronged set of directives. IndiGo was instructed to normalise operations at the earliest possible time and, crucially, to ensure that the disruptions did not translate into sudden fare hikes. The ministry emphasised that passenger welfare remained the top priority and noted that real-time monitoring of the airline’s operational performance would continue until full stability was achieved.

The ministry further directed the AAI to inform all airport directors nationwide to maintain round-the-clock oversight of terminal congestion and to provide immediate assistance to stranded passengers. Minister Naidu also instructed the aviation regulator to strictly monitor airfare fluctuations during this period of instability, ensuring that passengers were not burdened by opportunistic pricing.

Parallelly, DGCA director general Faiz Ahmed Kidwai held a separate review meeting with IndiGo’s senior operational and planning leaders. At this meeting, the airline shared its internal data on cancellations and detailed the reasons behind the cascading impact: transitional challenges during the rollout of revised FDTL provisions, crew-planning inaccuracies, and seasonal constraints common during winter operations.

The revised FDTL norms, aimed at enhancing pilot fatigue management and improving overall flight safety, were implemented in two phases—on July 1 and November 1—following court directives. While the first phase progressed smoothly, IndiGo admitted that it misjudged the staffing and scheduling impact of the second phase. In its submissions to the DGCA, the airline conceded that its crew resource estimates had significantly underestimated the actual requirement under the new norms, especially for night-time operations, where duty share increased sharply.

IndiGo informed the regulator that the airline was experiencing substantial transitional pressure in roster planning, impacting crew availability, duty-rest compliance, and scheduling stability. Corrective actions were underway, the airline said, but requested until February 10 to restore fully normalised operations across its network.

One of the most pressing issues discussed was the sudden rise in mandatory crew requirements. The data IndiGo shared with the government underscored the scale of the challenge. For pilots-in-command (PICs), the requirement rose from 2,186 in October to 2,422 in November after the new norms took effect. As of December 2025, IndiGo had 2,357 PICs—still short of the enhanced requirement. First officers (FOs) saw a similar increase: the October requirement of 1,948 rose to 2,153 in November. The airline currently has 2,194 first officers, exceeding the requirement but still constrained by scheduling complexities.

IndiGo cautioned the government that cancellations would continue over the next two to three days as part of ongoing schedule stabilisation efforts. From December 8, the airline plans to reduce flights temporarily to allow for a smoother realignment of crew and operations.

Given the escalating passenger impact, the DGCA has stepped up enforcement measures. The regulator directed its regional offices to conduct on-ground inspections at major airports, evaluating IndiGo’s management of disruptions, including passenger-handling manpower, crew deployment, rostering practices, and terminal coordination.

A DGCA inspection team visited Delhi Airport’s Terminal 1, where the impact was particularly severe. The team reported that IndiGo’s passenger-handling manpower was far below the required threshold to manage rush-hour congestion intensified by cancellations. The airline was instructed to immediately augment manpower and improve assistance services at all affected airports.

The DGCA also sought a comprehensive roadmap from IndiGo, covering every stage of operational recovery. This includes being explicit about projected crew recruitment timelines, training schedules, roster restructuring plans, safety risk assessments, and mitigation protocols to ensure full compliance with the revised FDTL framework. The airline has been ordered to provide a progress report every 15 days detailing operational improvements, crew availability, and the stability of roster deployments.

Further, IndiGo was asked to submit the specific FDTL relaxations it believes are essential to normalise operations in the short term, enabling DGCA to review and approve only those that do not compromise flight safety.

Meanwhile, the DGCA will maintain strict real-time surveillance of IndiGo’s network over the next week, with a close watch on flight restoration rates, passenger-handling efficiency, crew rostering patterns, and corrective measures adopted on the ground.

The current crisis highlights the complex interplay between regulatory enforcement and airline operational planning. Air safety remains non-negotiable, and fatigue-related risks have been under intense scrutiny worldwide. Yet, the implementation of these norms—especially during peak travel months and in the backdrop of rapid aviation sector expansion—has exposed systemic vulnerabilities in manpower planning, crew scheduling tools, and operational foresight.

For IndiGo, which operates over 2,300 flights daily and relies heavily on tight turnarounds and high aircraft utilisation, even minor planning lapses escalate quickly into large-scale disruptions. The airline’s admission of misjudgment marks a rare moment of transparency but also raises questions about internal governance processes, especially for an airline of its size and structure.

As IndiGo braces for a crucial two-month stabilisation window, passengers continue to face uncertainty. The government’s strong intervention, regulatory scrutiny, and demands for accountability are designed to mitigate the immediate crisis. However, the long-term implications may extend into broader discussions on India’s aviation reform, crew planning standards, and safety-first policymaking.

For now, the focus remains on restoring normalcy by February 10—a deadline that will test IndiGo’s capacity to execute corrective measures at scale while ensuring that passenger welfare remains intact.