DGCA monitoring IndiGo to ensure smooth operations: Officials

NEw new delhi: air power regulator, the board of directors superior general of civic Aviation (DGCA), will continue to monitor IndiGo, even after it penalised the airline and issued warning to senior executives on Saturday to ensure it has enough pilots to run operations after February 10, officials close to the matter told HT.Officials said the civil aviation ministry has directed IndiGo to submit weekly compliance reports, while the DGCA has been carrying out daily scrutiny of the airline’s operations during the three-month relaxation period under the revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) framework, which ends on February 10.“The airline, on the direction of the civil aviation ministry, has been submitting a compliance report every week and it will continue after the penal action too,” a ministry official said. “The regulator is keeping a close eye on the airline’s operations to ensure that it is able to function smoothly under the new norms,” a second official said.IndiGo, India’s largest airline, cancelled over 5,000 flights in the first week of December, citing pilot shortages allegedly arising from increased rest requirements for cockpit crew under the revised duty norms.DGCA on Saturday imposed a record Rs. 22.2 crore penalty on IndiGo and issued warnings to six senior executives including the chief operating officer, after its inquiry found the airline’s “overriding focus on maximising utilisation” of crew and aircraft through aggressive cost-cutting drove December’s operational meltdown that stranded over 300,000 passengers.The airline, which operates more than 2,200 flights a day, saw its daily operations curtailed following regulatory intervention into the matter. The civil aviation ministry subsequently directed IndiGo to cut 10% of its winter schedule and asked it to submit a roadmap for full compliance with Phase II of the FDTL norms. Show-cause notices were issued to IndiGo chief executive officer Pieter Elbers and chief operating officer Isidre Porqueras Orea, while multiple officials confirmed that the DGCA has maintained a daily scrutiny of the airline.Simultaneously, the regulator constituted an eight-member oversight team comprising senior flight operations inspectors to closely monitor the airline’s functioning amid the large-scale disruptions that caused significant passenger inconvenience across airports. According to a December 10 DGCA order, two officials from the team were designated to be stationed daily at IndiGo’s corporate office in Gurugram. Officials said the team will continue to remain in place until February 10, monitoring key operational aspects including cockpit and cabin crew availability, rostering practices and standby crew strength.Separately, DGCA also formed a four-member committee to investigate the reasons behind the mass cancellations. The committee submitted its report to the ministry on December 26, though its findings have not been made public. Officials familiar with the matter said the airline could face a substantial financial penalty along with possible changes in its senior management, depending on the final decision taken by the government.Alongside the operational scrutiny, DGCA has also been engaging with IndiGo over refunds and compensation for affected passengers. Officials said passengers impacted by cancellations and delays are entitled to compensation under Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR) Section 3, Series M, Part IV, which lays down facilities to be provided by airlines in cases of denied boarding, cancellations and delays.While the regulator has said it is monitoring compliance, questions remain over whether the enforcement action taken so far adequately reflects the scale of disruption faced by travellers, many of whom missed weddings, examinations and other time-sensitive commitments.Industry experts have, however, flagged the absence of a publicly articulated crew recruitment plan and a clearly defined framework for future compliance oversight, arguing that financial penalties alone may not serve as an effective deterrent. With the February 10 deadline for full FDTL compliance approaching, officials said the government’s focus is on ensuring operational stability without diluting safety norms, even as regulatory scrutiny of the airline continues.