IndiGo shares rise 3% as CEO Pieter Elbers tells employees 'the worst is behind us'

IndiGo share price

The shares of IndiGo-parent Interglobe Aviation jumped around 3 percent sharply on December 18 after CEO Pieter Elbers told employees "the worst is behind us". This comes after the airline faced crisis earlier this month, leading to massive cancellations and chaos.

The shares of the company closed at Rs 5,125 per share.

'Through the storm, IndiGo found its wings again'

In a video message to employees, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said, "Through the storm, we found our wings again." He added that the last two weeks have been very challenging for all. "As IndiGo employees, we stood tall and united," he added.

"Weathering this storm together with unwavering support for one another. Thank you to out pilots, cabin crew, airport staff, operations control, customer service and all functions who supported. Your collective dedication is the backbone of IndiGo," the executive can be heard as saying.

IndiGo restores its network to 2,200 flights today:

Elbers said that IndiGo has now restored its network to 2,200 flights today. "Given our scale and complexity, recovering such situation in short time is a testament to our teamwork and strength of our operating principles," he added.

Earlier this month, IndiGo saw mass cancellations, leading to widespread chaos at India's major airports. A significant factor behind the chaos was a sharp shortage of crew, particularly pilots, following the introduction of revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) norms. The new rules mandate more rest hours and humane rosters, but IndiGo has been struggling to realign its network accordingly.

IndiGo to focus on resilience, root cause analysis and rebuilding:

IndiGo will now focus on three things - resilience, root cause analysis and rebuilding, the executive said. Amid bad weather, IndiGo's focus is to keep operations stable and minimise impact, Elbers added.

Speaking about the recent crisis, IndiGo CEO said, "What we witnessed seems to be a compounding effect of several factors. Everyone wants answers." He added that speculations are circulating, but employees are advised to stay calm and not engage in such rumors.

IndiGo's appoints external aviation expert for root-cause analysis:

"We need a full-scale analysis first," he said, adding that an external aviation expert has been appointed by the board to conduct a comprehensive root-cause analysis.

"Similar disruptions occurred in other parts of the world with large airlines. While every crisis is unique, lessons from others will also help us in strengthening our systems," Elbers said.

IndiGo share price history:

Since the beginning of this month, IndiGo shares fell over 21 percent to hit a low of Rs 4,645 per share on December 11. The stock has however regained more than 7 percent since then, but are still lower than their pre-crisis levels.

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