New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport has issued an update on Saturday reassuring passengers that IndiGo’s flight operations are “steadily resuming” after a major disruption that saw over 1,000 flights cancelled on Friday. The airport urged travellers to confirm their flight status before heading to the terminal as services work toward normalcy.
“We are glad to update that IndiGo flight operations are now steadily resuming and getting back to normalcy following the brief disruption. Please check the status of your booking and flight before leaving from home,” the airport advisory said.
The situation unfolded after IndiGo cancelled all domestic departures from Delhi Airport until midnight Friday, marking the airline’s most affected day, with cancellations crossing 1,000 flights.
IndiGo Says Normalcy Expected Between Dec 10-15
IndiGo CEO Peter Elbers acknowledged the chaos in a video message, offering a sincere apology to passengers. He explained that full normalisation will take some time but is expected between December 10 and 15. “December 5 was the most severely impacted day, with the number of cancellations well over 1000. I extend our sincerest apologies for the inconvenience it has caused to our customers. It will take some time to return to a full normal situation, which we do anticipate between 10-15 December,” Elbers said.
In the wake of the disruption, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu attributed the crisis largely to IndiGo’s mismanagement of pilot crew schedules under the new flight duty time limitation (FDTL) rules introduced by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). These regulations, effective from November 1, aim to limit pilot work hours to improve safety.
Speaking to ANI, the Minister explained that while the DGCA had engaged with all airlines over six months regarding the FDTL norms, IndiGo struggled to comply due to “mismanagement.”
Other airlines like Air India and SpiceJet reportedly adapted smoothly. To alleviate passenger hardships, the civil aviation ministry granted IndiGo temporary relief from some FDTL restrictions.
“From November 1, the DGCA came up with new FDTL (flight duty time limitation) regulations. The Ministry also initiated a continuous engagement process with the airlines for at least 6 months. Previously, there was no issue regarding the new FDTL norm. Other airlines, including Air India and SpiceJet, have adjusted. However, what has unfolded is due to mismanagement by IndiGo regarding its crew. We have given certain abeyance regarding FDTL norms to IndiGo to ensure normalcy,” said Naidu.
IndiGo’s dominant market share of nearly 63% has raised concerns about monopolistic effects after this mass cancellation left thousands of travellers stranded, fueling outrage even within Parliament. The government has since directed airlines to implement proactive measures to resolve ongoing disruptions and ensure timely passenger refunds.
The DGCA has blamed the turmoil on IndiGo’s “misjudgment and gap in planning” while implementing the new pilot duty-hour rules.
To stabilize operations, IndiGo has received a one-time exemption from the DGCA’s pilot night duty regulations until February 10, 2026. This exemption allows the airline to bypass stricter flight duty and rest period rules related to night duties between midnight and 6:50 AM, and relaxes requirements around counting pilot leave as weekly rest.
