Civil Aviation Ministry orders IndiGo operations to be curtailed by 10 pc to stabilise flight schedules

NEW DELHI: Union Civil Aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu said that IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers and top management officials of the airline were summoned once again on Tuesday amid an ongoing enquiry on the inconvenience faced by passengers due to the airline’s “internal mismanagement of crew rosters, flight schedules and inadequate communication.”

The Union Civil Aviation Ministry has ordered the airline to curtail its overall operations by 10 per cent, up from an earlier order of 5 per cent, citing the necessity to “stabilise the airline’s operations”. The airline is ordered to continue covering its usual destinations.

The ministry also gave “strict instructions” to expedite baggage return and complete remaining refunds for the passengers.

“The Ministry considers it necessary to curtail the overall Indigo routes, which will help in stabilising the airline’s operations and lead to reduced cancellations. A curtailment of 10% has been ordered. While abiding with it, Indigo will continue to cover all its destinations as before. Indigo has been instructed to comply with all the directives of the Ministry, including fare capping and passenger convenience measures without any exception,” Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu posted on X.

According to the union minister, IndiGo CEO Elbers has confirmed that the airline has confirmed 100 per cent of its refunds for flights affected till 6th December.

“While the enquiry and necessary actions are underway, another meeting with Indigo’s top management was held to review the stabilisation measures. Today again, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers was summoned to the Ministry to provide an update. He confirmed that 100% of the refunds for flights affected till 6th December have been completed. A strict instruction to expedite the completion of the remaining refunds and baggage handover was given,” he said.

Additionally, the airline was ordered to comply with “all the directives of the Ministry, including fare capping and passenger convenience measures without any exception.”

Earlier, the airline said it would deliver 8,500 pieces of stranded luggage to its passengers by 7 PM on Tuesday.

“By 7 PM, (IndiGo) will deliver 8,500 pieces of luggage to travellers. Luggage delivery has been completed at 49 out of 94 destinations,” according to the airline.

Additionally, the airline has also said that hundreds of bags are still set to be delivered to the people, adding, “Around 800 pieces of luggage are still pending at 45 destinations.”

Earlier today, in a fresh statement, the airline’s CEO, Pieter Elbers, apologised to the thousands of affected passengers for “letting them down” due to the airline’s “major operational disruptions”.

“Following our earlier communication, I am here to share that our airline, IndiGo, is back on its feet, and our operations are stable. We let you down during a major operational disruption, and we’re sorry for that. The beauty of air travel is that it brings together people, emotions, ambitions and aspirations, and we know that you are travelling for various reasons,” CEO Pieter Elbers said in a statement.

Earlier, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) directed the airline to reduce its flight operations by 5% across sectors, citing the airline’s failure to operate its winter schedule efficiently and a backlog of cancellations. The airline had been asked to submit a revised schedule by 5 PM on December 10, 2025.

In an official notice to IndiGo, the DGCA said the airline had been approved for 15,014 departures per week, totalling 64,346 flights for November 2025 under the Winter Schedule. However, operational data show that IndiGo operated only 59,438 flights, with 951 cancellations recorded during the month. (ANI)