Indigo CEO summoned by DGCA to appear with senior officials by 3 PM tomorrow

Following persistent flight disruptions, the DGCA has summoned the CEO of Indigo. Consequently, the company will be required to address every issue faced by passengers. It is noteworthy that thousands of the airline's flights have been cancelled over the past several days.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) summoned the CEO of IndiGo to Delhi on Wednesday. This step has been taken by the government after a continuous spate of flight cancellations. The government is now intensifying its response to the airline's widespread operational disruptions. The DGCA has ordered IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers to appear with senior officials from various departments by 3 PM on Thursday. During this time, the airline will have to answer several questions regarding future updates.

IndiGo CEO's Response

Regarding passenger refunds, Pieter Elbers stated that millions of customers have received their full travel refunds. However, he did not provide any figures. He also refused to comment on compensation for last-minute flight cancellations and travel delays. Under the passenger charter rules, airlines are obligated to compensate passengers in certain situations.

Summons Issued After Claims

Earlier this week, IndiGo claimed that all operations would proceed without any issues from then on and that the situation had normalised. Despite these claims, disruptions continued, and on Wednesday, IndiGo cancelled 61 flights from Bengaluru. According to media reports, these lapses led the DGCA to summon the IndiGo CEO and seek answers to several questions.

Orders Issued for 5% Cut

Following the government's order to cut IndiGo's winter schedule by 10% (approximately 220 daily flights), over 460 flights were cancelled across six major cities. Prior to this, the DGCA had ordered a 5% reduction, which led to a decrease of about 115 flights.

Orders Issued for Investigation

The DGCA issued these directives along with a formal inspection order on December 10, instructing DGCA officials to conduct immediate on-site assessments at 11 airports. The DGCA sought information on safety and operational readiness, congestion within terminals, queue management, staff adequacy, deployment of staff at 24x7 help desks, notification of delays and cancellations, and even basic amenities like drinking water.