Aniket PujariDisruptions in IndiGo operations have now stretched into the eighth straight day, as the airline scrambles to steady a situation that has thrown air travel into chaos and left thousands of passengers stranded.
IndiGo, the country’s largest budget carrier by market capitalization, hit this crisis after the government rolled out the second and final phase of Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL), aimed at reducing pilot fatigue and improving safety.
However, the move triggered an acute shortage of crew in the airline, leading to thousands of cancellations and delays across major airports in India, and prompting a probe by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
IndiGo bore the brunt largely due to the sheer scale and size of its operations. It handles over 2,300 daily departures, more than double that of its closest rival, the Air India Group, which operates around 1,000 departures a day.
How many flights have been cancelled so far?
The widespread disruptions have resulted in 905 flight cancellations from 1-8 December. During this period, the airline operated around 2,266 flights out of the 3,171 scheduled, according to an official statement by Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA).
Overall, the cancellations and delays have collectively affected more than three lakh passengers across India, underscoring the scale of the crisis and the strain on airport operations nationwide.
What’s the status on pending luggage?
Following the DCGA’s directive on Friday, IndiGo has been working to return stranded baggage to passengers’ chosen addresses. However, more than 800 pieces of luggage are still stuck across 45 destinations.
IndiGo aims to deliver 8,500 pieces of stranded luggage to passengers by 7 PM on Tuesday, 9 December. The airline told ANI that luggage delivery has already been completed at 49 out of its 94 destinations, with work ongoing at the remaining stations.
Which airports were worst hit by the crisis?
Mumbai emerged as one of the major hubs affected by IndiGo’s operational disruptions. On the domestic front, flights to and from key cities including Ahmedabad, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata, Cochin, Goa and Lucknow faced significant cancellations and delays, leaving thousands of passengers missing out on their travel plans.
International operations from Mumbai were also impacted, particularly flights to Amsterdam and Istanbul, highlighting the crisis extended beyond domestic routes.
The disruption peaked on 4 and 5 December, when the highest number of cancellations and delays were recorded, putting immense pressure on both airport operations and customer service teams.
When is the situation expected to improve?
IndiGo provided a fresh update on the disruptions this morning, claiming that its network has been fully restored and reporting a “90% on-time performance across the network” on 8 December.
Despite this, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Hyderabad airports still witnessed more than 200 flight disruptions on Tuesday, indicating that challenges persist at key hubs.
IndiGo on Sunday, 7 December, shared a new date to restore normalcy in its schedules, announcing that it now expects its flight operations to return to normal by 10 December 2025. The revised timeline moves up its earlier target, signalling that the airline anticipates a faster recovery of its schedules.
