IndiGo cancels hundreds of flights after DGCA rest-rule rollout, operations hit hard

IndiGo, India’s largest airline, cancelled more than 550 flights across December 3–4, stranding passengers in major hubs such as Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune, after new crew rest and duty-hour norms introduced by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) came fully into force.

The rules — aimed at reducing pilot fatigue — increased the mandatory weekly rest period to 48 hours (from 36), reduced permissible night landings per pilot from six to two, and tightened duty-time limits for both cockpit and cabin crew.

IndiGo has accepted that its planning and crew strength were inadequate to meet these stricter norms. In a statement, the airline said it “misjudged” the full impact of the change and will begin reducing the number of flights from December 8 to stabilise operations. Full recovery is targeted by February 10, 2026.

Compounding operational issues: Winter season, demand, technical snags

Observers say the crisis was not solely due to pilot-rest rules. The disruption coincided with a rise in winter-season air travel demand and a recent surge in IndiGo’s winter flight schedule — roughly 6% higher than the prior year.

Additionally, an urgent software update to the Airbus A320 fleet over November 29–30 disrupted crew planning, and technical issues with check-in and reservation systems added to the chaos.

Since IndiGo operates a tightly integrated hub-and-spoke network, a single flight cancellation — particularly from a hub — often triggers chain reactions across the country. Delays or cancellations in one city resulted in crews and aircraft being unavailable for flights scheduled later that day elsewhere.

Impact on passengers

On-time performance dropped precipitously: IndiGo’s OTP fell from 84.1% in October to just 67.7% in November. On December 2, punctuality for some flights was as low as 35%.

Passengers across major airports reported being informed of cancellations only hours before departure, receiving little or no support for rebooking. Many were forced to reschedule at higher fares or cancel travel plans entirely.

Pilot unions and crew associations — including the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) — blamed IndiGo’s lean staffing and alleged a “hiring freeze”, saying the airline failed to build a buffer over the preparatory period it had before the rule change.

Regulatory scrutiny, mitigation efforts

In response to the crisis, the DGCA launched an investigation, asking IndiGo to submit a detailed mitigation plan, revised roster charts, and a crew-and-aircraft induction roadmap to stabilise operations. The regulator also directed IndiGo to provide fortnightly progress reports.

Meanwhile, the government has mandated support for stranded passengers at airports and asked the airline to ensure fair fare practices during the disruption.

IndiGo says it will begin to cut flight volume starting 8 December to manage resources better and prevent further cancellations, aiming for complete restoration by 10 February 2026.

Why IndiGo was hardest hit

• The new DGCA norms demand a roughly 10–20% increase in crew strength or smarter rostering to maintain the same flight volume.
• Despite having over 400 aircraft in its fleet and operating more than 2,200 daily flights, IndiGo reportedly maintained only a 4% crew buffer, which became, in effect, nil under the new rules.
• Other domestic carriers — with smaller networks or more conservative growth plans — appear to have avoided such large-scale disruption, suggesting that a combination of aggressive expansion and conservative crew hiring left IndiGo especially vulnerable.

What this means for Indian aviation

The crisis at IndiGo is a stark reminder of the delicate balance between airline growth, regulatory compliance and operational capacity. While the DGCA’s new Flight Duty Time Limitations are arguably essential to ensure pilot safety and reduce fatigue-related risk, the transition demands advance preparation and proportional scaling of crew strength — especially for airlines with large networks.

With winter travel soaring and other carriers also operating near capacity, the ability of Indian aviation to absorb disruptions without cascading failure remains uncertain.