‘We misjudged it’: IndiGo admits crew-rule gaps as DGCA steps in, seeks time till Feb 10

200 daily cancellations, angry passengers and a scramble to fix IndiGo’s crew rosters

IndiGo has acknowledged that its ongoing flight cancellations and disruption were triggered by misjudgment and planning gaps in rolling out the second phase of India’s revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) rules. The airline has told the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) that it needs time until February 10, 2026 to fully stabilise operations.

Close to 200 flights a day have been cancelled since late November, driven largely by crew shortages arising from the new fatigue-management norms, seasonal constraints and scheduling bottlenecks.

Civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu and DGCA officials reviewed the situation on Thursday, directing IndiGo to normalise operations quickly and ensure fares do not spike during the disruption.

IndiGo controls more than half of India’s domestic aviation market. Prolonged disruptions affect passengers nationwide, strain airport infrastructure and risk raising fares during the peak travel season.

The second phase of the new FDTL rules came into force on November 1, tightening night-duty limits and mandating higher rest periods for pilots. IndiGo admitted it underestimated the additional crew required to comply with these norms.

DGCA said the airline accepted that its crew requirement under the revised rules had 'exceeded anticipation'. IndiGo’s pilot-in-command requirement rose from 2,186 in October to 2,422 in November, while the airline had 2,357 available. First-officer needs rose to 2,153, against 2,194 currently onboard.

IndiGo has sought temporary exemptions from specific FDTL provisions until its roster stabilises.

The regulator has directed IndiGo to file a detailed roadmap covering pilot recruitment, training, roster restructuring, safety-risk assessments and mitigation steps. A progress report must be submitted every 15 days.

DGCA teams also conducted field inspections at major airports. At Delhi Terminal 1, the team found IndiGo’s passenger-handling staff “inadequate” for disruption-induced crowding and instructed the airline to urgently increase manpower.

Since November 1, IndiGo has cancelled more than 1,550 flights, including 1,232 in November, with 755 directly linked to the revised rostering rule. The disruptions have sharply eroded its on-time performance, from 87 percent in October to 67.7 percent in November, and down to 19.7 percent on December 4, according to ministry data.

IndiGo will reduce flying to stabilise rosters, with full normalisation targeted by February 10. DGCA will maintain real-time oversight of cancellations, passenger handling, and roster execution, and review IndiGo’s request for FDTL relaxations in the coming weeks.