India’s civil aviation sector witnessed significant turbulence this week as widespread flight cancellations by IndiGo—over 500 flights in just two days—triggered passenger distress and prompted urgent intervention from the government. Civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu convened a high-level review on Thursday to assess the scale of disruption and determine the causes behind the airline’s operational breakdown. IndiGo, the country’s largest carrier, which typically operates around 2,300 flights a day, blamed a combination of crew-planning hurdles, new regulatory requirements, and weather-related constraints for the chaos.

The disruptions began unfolding earlier in the week, quickly escalating into long queues, delayed departures, and stranded passengers at airports across the country. Given IndiGo’s dominant share in India’s domestic aviation network, its operational irregularities immediately rippled across the wider ecosystem.

Following widespread reports, Minister Naidu instructed the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) to intensify real-time surveillance of IndiGo’s network. In a post on X, the minister announced that the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and all airport operators had been asked to provide maximum assistance to affected passengers while the situation stabilised.

At the meeting, IndiGo presented its assessment, attributing the disruptions to transitional challenges arising from the implementation of the revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms, as well as seasonal weather complexities that commonly affect winter operations. The airline added that it required time until February 10 to fully stabilise network operations and integrate the new regulatory framework into crew scheduling.

Minister Naidu, however, expressed displeasure with the airline’s preparedness, underscoring that carriers had been given ample lead time to implement the FDTL norms without compromising operational continuity. According to officials, the minister made it clear that the responsibility to ensure a seamless transition rested with the airlines and that the government expected swift corrective measures.

In response, the aviation regulator deployed officers directly to IndiGo’s operational control centres to maintain continuous oversight. DGCA teams were instructed to carry out field inspections at major airports, examining passenger-handling capabilities, ground-level coordination, communication procedures, and the airline’s response to crowding and cancellations. The ministry emphasised that timely updates to passengers, transparent communication, and adequate on-ground support were non-negotiable.

Meanwhile, AAI officials were asked to ensure that airport directors across the country monitored the evolving situation closely and mobilised on-ground resources to assist disrupted passengers. Given Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad were among the most severely impacted hubs, enhanced coordination mechanisms were activated to manage passenger flow and ease congestion.

One of the central reasons for the breakdown is linked to IndiGo’s pilot availability. People familiar with the matter said the carrier has been grappling with an acute pilot shortage ever since the revised FDTL norms came into effect. These new rules, designed to mitigate pilot fatigue and improve safety, have significantly reshaped crew schedules.

Under the revised FDTL framework, pilots must now receive 48 hours of weekly rest—up from the earlier requirement—reducing the number of duty hours available for rostering. The norms have also extended night hours and restricted pilots to only two night landings per duty period, as opposed to the previous allowance of six. The shift has created a ripple effect on night operations, which form a substantial part of IndiGo’s flight schedule, especially given its high-frequency model and rapid turnaround times.

IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, in an email to employees, acknowledged the strain on the system. He cited a combination of factors—“minor technology glitches, schedule changes, adverse weather conditions, heightened congestion in the aviation ecosystem, and the implementation of the newly released FDTL norms”—as contributing to the widespread disruption. Elbers assured staff that corrective steps were underway but also emphasised the complexity of transitioning to a stricter regulatory regime during peak winter operations.

However, the Airline Pilots Association of India (ALPAI), representing more than 800 pilots, criticised the situation sharply. The association attributed the crisis not merely to regulatory changes but to what it described as a “failure of proactive resource planning” by the country’s leading airlines. ALPAI argued that the looming shortages and operational pressure points had been foreseeable and should have been addressed well before the second phase of FDTL norms came into force.

IndiGo’s request for time until February 10 to stabilise operations suggests that the disruptions may not ease immediately. Industry analysts point out that implementing FDTL norms requires extensive recalibration: expanding crew pools, modifying nightly flight patterns, adjusting training schedules, and strengthening real-time rostering tools. Without these changes, airlines risk breaching duty limits or facing cascading delays.

Weather conditions have also complicated matters. Winter brings dense fog, reduced visibility, runway restrictions, and frequent ATC-mandated delays, all of which compress available flight windows and place additional pressure on an already stretched crew roster.

Though weather-related delays are common during this period, the confluence of regulatory changes, scheduling misalignments, and technical issues created a far more acute operational crisis for the airline this year. The government reiterated its expectation that airlines, especially market leaders like IndiGo, anticipate such seasonal fluctuations and plan accordingly to avoid large-scale passenger inconvenience.

As DGCA teams continue on-ground inspections, the regulator is expected to compile detailed reports on IndiGo’s rostering, crew-management tools, training pipelines, and contingency planning mechanisms. The findings will inform whether further directives or penalties are needed, should gaps in compliance be identified.

Meanwhile, passengers across India continue to face uncertainty as IndiGo struggles to recalibrate its schedules. The airline has said it will reduce flights in the coming days to allow for better stabilisation but has not yet specified the number of cancellations expected. For now, the focus remains on restoring network reliability while ensuring that safety norms are not compromised.

Thursday’s review marks one of the most serious government interventions in recent times concerning India’s aviation sector. The coming weeks will determine whether IndiGo can successfully navigate the twin challenges of regulatory transition and operational recovery. Without effective adaptation, industry experts warn that the disruptions may impede broader aviation growth during one of the busiest travel seasons of the year.

Overall, the episode underscores the delicate balance between enforcing safety standards and maintaining operational efficiency—and the critical need for meticulous planning by airlines as regulatory frameworks evolve.