MoCA, DGCA hold high-level meeting on IndiGo disruptions; senior officials to visit airports nationwide

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The Ministry of Civil Aviation and Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) have been continuously monitoring the situation across all airports in real time since December 3, due to extraordinary circumstances arising from the disruption of IndiGo operations.

According to a statement from Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinarapu's Office, a high-level review meeting comprising all senior officials was held to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the situation.

All senior officials of the Ministry have been instructed to visit airports to verify airline operations and passenger-orientated services.

Any shortcomings identified, including feedback from passenger interactions, are to be addressed and rectified immediately, the statement said.

On Monday, Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu told Rajya Sabha that the problems faced by IndiGo Airlines passengers were linked to the airline's internal crew rostering and operational planning and not the Aircraft Maintenance and Scheduling System (AMSS).

He added that thorough consultations have been held with all stakeholders concerning Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) guidelines and emphasised that there will be no compromise on safety.

He said stringent Civil Aviation Requirements (CARs) exist to protect passengers affected by flight delays and cancellations.

Notably, on December 6, DCGA issued show cause notices to IndiGo's Chief Executive Officer, Pieter Elbers, and its Chief Operating Officer, Isidro Porqueras.

This could ultimately affect continuity of senior leadership at IndiGo, the rating agency said.

The airline's operations, which deliver cost efficiencies in stable times, did not demonstrate the resilience needed to withstand regulatory changes, leading to the cancellation of around 1,600 flights on December 5.

IndiGo's on-time performance dropped to 68% in November from 84% in October, with over 1,200 cancellations in November.

However, the airlines claimed on Monday that they had optimised their operations.

"Today (December 8), we are all set to operate over 1,800 flights, connecting all stations that we operate to. We have optimised our operations and managed to reduce the number of cancellations, which are being notified to customers in advance. Our on-time performance (OTP) has also improved to 91% across the network."

"Over 1800 flights operated, which is up from ~1,650 yesterday, and 90% on-time performance (OTP) across the entire network has been registered, up from ~75% yesterday," the statement read.