TMC MP seeks ‘urgent action’ from DGCA against IndiGo for frequent flight delays

Trinamool MP Saket Gokhale on January 5 wrote to the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) seeking urgent action against IndiGo for frequent flight delays due to the non-availability of cockpit crew.

The National Spokesperson of the All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) urged the DGCA to issue a showcause notice to the budget carrier and gave seven days to be apprised of the action taken against IndiGo.

The TMC leader shared the letter he wrote to DGCA Director-General Vikram Dev Dutt on social media platform X along with a caption that read: “There have been NUMEROUS complaints on social media by passengers regarding the recent trend of constant last-minute delays of IndiGo flights. Often these delays are due to the non-availability of crew. Have written to the DGCA demanding URGENT action into this matter.” In the letter, he also detailed his ordeal when he almost missed a connecting flight due to a flight delay by IndiGo as one of the pilots did not arrive on time.

The airline in its response to Gokhale’s post stated the delay was due to “operational reasons”. The statement read: “Flight 6E 2001 from Delhi to Ahmedabad was delayed due to operational reasons. Passengers were kept informed about the delay. We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to all our passengers.”

The development comes just a day after the domestic airline announced the withdrawal of fuel charges that were levied on both domestic and international flights from October 6. The move will reduce airfare by up to Rs 1,000 on certain routes.