IndiGo airlines (PTI image)
NEW DELHI: JDU MP and Parliamentary Standing Committee Chair Sanjay Jha on Wednesday said the panel has heard IndiGo’s side on last week’s flight disruptions, but the inquiry is still ongoing.“There was a disruption at the airport involving air traffic control, and a detailed presentation on it was given today… The pilots’ association, airline operators, and the Ministry also gave detailed presentations… We have heard their side of the story. However, the inquiry is still ongoing. After that, maybe we will sit again,” Jha said. It comes after IndiGo’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) Isidro Porqueras appeared before the committee, along with officials from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) and the Federation of Pilot Associations.When asked by reporters about the recent nationwide IndiGo flight cancellations, Porqueras declined to comment publicly. “Sorry, no comments today,” the IndiGo COO said. IndiGo, India’s largest airline, faced disruptions since last week following the second phase of revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms, which reduced the number of night landings allowed for pilots. While all airlines adjusted to the new norms, IndiGo was the worst affected due to a smaller pilot buffer. The airline cancelled hundreds of flights, affecting thousands of passengers and triggering panic at major airports.A senior airline official said the disruptions arose from multiple simultaneous issues. “We will need a root cause analysis, which will obviously take time… the disruptions happened due to a combination of factors and which factor played how much role will be known after the root cause analysis.” He insisted that there was no question of inadequacy, describing the episode as a “learning experience.”The DGCA has earlier issued show-cause notices to IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers and COO Isidro Porqueras seeking explanations for the operational failures. The ministry of civil aviation also directed senior officials to conduct on-ground inspections at airports including Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad, Pune, Guwahati, Goa and Thiruvananthapuram to assess passenger hardships and airline functioning.Union civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu told the Rajya Sabha that the disruptions were not linked to the Aircraft Maintenance and Scheduling System (AMSS) but resulted from the airline’s internal crew rostering and operational planning. He emphasized that consultations on FDTL were held with all stakeholders and that passenger safety remains non-negotiable.To stabilise operations, the DGCA has directed IndiGo to cut 5% of its daily schedule, equivalent to around 110 flights. The airline, which normally operates about 2,300 flights daily, gradually resumed services and expects full operational stability by December 10. Go to Source
