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NEW DELHI: IndiGo on Wednesday apologised for disruptions across its network over the past two days, saying it regretted the inconvenience caused to passengers. The airline said the delays and cancellations stemmed from a combination of unexpected operational problems.In an official statement, IndiGo said minor technical glitches, winter schedule adjustments, adverse weather, heavy airport congestion and updated crew rostering rules collectively weakened operations in a way the airline claims it could not have foreseen.”We acknowledge that IndiGo’s operations have been significantly disrupted across the network for the past two days, and we sincerely apologise to our customers for the inconvenience caused. A multitude of unforeseen operational challenges, including minor technology glitches, schedule changes linked to the winter season, adverse weather conditions, increased congestion in the aviation system and the implementation of updated crew rostering rules (Flight Duty Time Limitations) had a negative compounding impact on our operations in a way that was not feasible to be anticipated,” the statement read. The airline further said that to control the delays and bring some stability, it has made changes to its schedules for the next 48 hours. The airline said these steps should help normalise flights and improve punctuality across the system. Affected travellers are being offered alternate flights or refunds, wherever applicable.”To contain the disruption and restore stability, we have initiated calibrated adjustments to our schedules. These measures will remain in place for the next 48 hours and will allow us to normalise our operations and progressively recover our punctuality across the network. Our teams are working around the clock to ease customer discomfort and ensure operations stabilize as quickly as possible. Furthermore, the affected customers are being offered alternate travel arrangements to reach their destinations or refunds, as applicable.”Also read: Check-in systems of Indigo, Air India and other airlines hit; airport message ‘puts’ it on Microsoft outage; what the message saysIndiGo has been facing a severe crew shortage after the new Flight Duty Time Limitation rules came into force last month. These rules mandate more humane rostering for pilots and cabin crew. The shortage has led to large-scale delays and cancellations, especially at major airports like Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.The situation worsened on Wednesday morning after check-in systems unexpectedly failed at multiple airports, including major hubs. This forced several airlines to switch to slow manual procedures. The system outage hit airport check-in platforms simultaneously at various locations, leading to immediate flight delays.Government data showed that only 35% of IndiGo’s over 2,200 daily flights operated on time on December 2. Travellers were also advised to check their latest flight status before leaving for the airport to avoid further inconvenience.
