New Delhi, January 18, 2026: India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), on Saturday imposed a record penalty of ₹22.2 crore on IndiGo and issued warnings to six senior executives, including the airline’s Chief Operating Officer, after finding that systemic failures and operational overreach caused a severe flight disruption in early December 2025. The December crisis, which stranded more than 300,000 passengers, involved 2,507 flight cancellations and 1,852 delays between December 3 and 5, marking one of the largest operational meltdowns in Indian civil aviation history.

The DGCA’s four-member inquiry committee determined that IndiGo’s relentless focus on maximising aircraft and crew utilisation, combined with insufficient operational buffers, inadequate software systems, and deficiencies in the management structure, contributed to the widespread disruption. The report confirmed concerns long raised by pilot associations and aviation experts, who had warned that the airline’s aggressive cost-cutting measures and optimisation practices left little room for contingencies.

“Crew rosters were designed to maximise duty periods, with increased reliance on dead-heading, tail swaps, extended duty patterns, and minimal recovery margins. This approach compromised roster integrity and adversely impacted operational resilience,” the inquiry committee said, according to a government release.

The DGCA report further noted that IndiGo failed to properly implement revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) provisions, which had been announced more than two years before taking effect. These rules, aimed at increasing pilot rest hours and restricting night-duty landings, were intended to prevent fatigue-related operational risks. The committee found that IndiGo’s management did not adequately identify planning deficiencies or maintain sufficient operational buffers, directly resulting in the prolonged flight delays and cancellations.

As part of the enforcement actions, the DGCA issued formal warnings to six senior executives, including COO Isidre Porqueras Orea, the Deputy Head of Flight Operations, Assistant Vice President for Crew Resource Planning, and the Director of Flight Operations. The senior vice president for operations control, Jason Herter, was removed from operational responsibilities and barred from holding any accountable position. Chief Executive Pieter Elbers received a formal caution for inadequate oversight.

Additionally, the airline has been asked to deposit ₹50 crore as a bank guarantee under the DGCA’s “IndiGo Systemic Reform Assurance Scheme.” The funds will be released in tranches only as the airline demonstrates verified reforms in leadership, governance, manpower planning, and digital systems. The phased release is structured as ₹10 crore for leadership reforms within three months, ₹15 crore for manpower planning improvements over six months, ₹15 crore for digital system upgrades within nine months, and a final ₹10 crore for sustained compliance over a 9-15 month period.

IndiGo issued a statement on Saturday acknowledging the DGCA’s orders, stating that it was “committed to taking full cognizance of the orders” and would implement necessary corrective measures. The airline noted that an internal review of operational processes had been underway since the disruption to strengthen resilience and prevent future crises, highlighting its 19-plus-year operational record.

The DGCA’s ₹22.2 crore fine is the highest ever levied on an Indian airline, yet aviation analysts have argued that the penalty is modest in comparison to IndiGo’s financial capacity. With the airline commanding around 60% of India’s domestic market and reporting a net profit of ₹7,263 crore for the financial year ending March 2025, the fine represents just 0.31% of its annual profit. Experts have described the penalty as more symbolic than punitive.

“The DGCA speaks of compensation, but a ₹22 crore penalty is negligible for an airline of IndiGo’s size. It is roughly equivalent to the cost of employing about 20 pilots, which means absolutely nothing to the airline,” said Mark Martin of Martin Consultancy. Former bureaucrats and officials who requested anonymity echoed this view, noting that while the fine sends a regulatory signal, it does little to address the scale of inconvenience suffered by hundreds of thousands of passengers.

The penalty consists of ₹1.8 crore for six systemic violations and ₹20.4 crore for continued non-compliance with FDTL rules from December 5 through February 10. The six violations, each carrying a ₹30 lakh fine, include failures to establish effective FDTL compliance schemes with buffer margins, balancing commercial imperatives with crew effectiveness, delegating operational control improperly, and failing to meet DGCA safety standards. The continued non-compliance penalty, applied at ₹30 lakh per day for 68 days, addressed breaches of night-duty restrictions, highlighting the airline’s failure to comply even with granted exemptions during the crisis period.

Beyond financial penalties, the DGCA has ordered IndiGo to curtail operations and mandated submission of fortnightly compliance reports. The airline is also required to take “appropriate action” against other personnel identified through its internal review, with updates to be submitted to the regulator. In a rare admission of regulatory shortcomings, the DGCA announced an internal inquiry aimed at identifying improvements within its own system, acknowledging that oversight failures contributed to the December disruption.

Industry observers note that this crisis exposed the risks associated with over-optimisation in aviation operations. IndiGo’s pursuit of maximum aircraft and crew utilisation, designed to reduce costs and increase profitability, left minimal margin for unforeseen operational challenges. Experts argue that while the airline’s growth strategy had yielded efficiency and market dominance, it also made the system vulnerable to widespread disruption in the face of any unexpected event.

The airline’s exemption from stricter FDTL rules, which will expire on February 10, will not be extended, according to an official source. These rules involve stricter limits on pilot duty hours, increased weekly rest periods, expanded night-duty definitions, and limitations on night landings, all designed to improve safety and mitigate fatigue-related risks.

In response to the DGCA’s actions, IndiGo reiterated its commitment to strengthening operational resilience, improving internal processes, and ensuring compliance with all regulatory requirements. The airline has also pledged to cooperate fully with the regulator, implement systemic reforms, and restore public confidence in its operations.

The December 2025 disruption remains a cautionary tale for the Indian aviation sector, highlighting the delicate balance between operational efficiency, cost control, and passenger safety. With IndiGo’s dominance in the domestic market, regulators and industry stakeholders are expected to closely monitor the airline’s compliance in the coming months to prevent recurrence of large-scale operational failures.

The DGCA’s enforcement actions signal a new era of accountability in Indian civil aviation, where both systemic shortcomings and executive responsibility are under scrutiny. While the fine may appear modest relative to IndiGo’s profits, the combination of financial penalties, operational curbs, executive warnings, and bank guarantees represents a multi-pronged regulatory effort to compel the airline to prioritise operational safety, compliance, and passenger welfare over short-term efficiency gains.