NewDelhi: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Friday dismissed four flight inspectors, who were responsible for monitoring the safety and operational standards of IndiGo and again summoned the CEO Pieter Elbers following the chaos at major airports due to flight cancellations and delays.
The action comes amid a deepening crisis at the airline, which has cancelled thousands of flights this month.
According to, the DGCA acted against the inspectors after finding negligence in their inspection and monitoring duties.
Meanwhile, the regulator has also deployed two special oversight teams at IndiGo’s Gurugram office to closely track the airline’s operations.
These teams will submit a daily report to the DGCA by 6 p.m. One team is tracking IndiGo’s fleet strength, pilot availability, crew duty hours, training schedules, split-duty patterns, unplanned leave, standby crew status, and the number of flights impacted by crew shortages.
It is also reviewing the airline’s average stage length and network to understand the full scale of the operational disruption.
The second team is focusing on the impact of the crisis on passengers, which includes checking the status of refunds from both the airline and travel agents, compensation offered under Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR), on-time performance, baggage return, and the overall cancellation status.
To manage the situation, IndiGo has been ordered to reduce its operations by 10 per cent to stabilise its schedules and control further disruptions.
IndiGo operates around 2,200 flights per day, but following the order now more than 200 flights will now be cancelled daily.
Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said passengers had suffered “severe inconvenience” because of IndiGo’s mismanagement of crew rosters, flight timings, and communication.
After a meeting with IndiGo CEO Elbers, the minister said the airline must follow all ministry directives, including fare caps and measures to support affected passengers.
Bureau Report
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