IndiGo flight disruptions Panel submits probe report to DGCA

New Delhi, Dec 26 (PTI) The four-member panel that probed the massive flight disruptions at IndiGo earlier this week has submitted its report to the aviation regulator DGCA, according to a senior official.
     The inquiry committee, headed by DGCA Joint Director General Sanjay K Bramhane, was constituted on December 5 to conduct a comprehensive review and assessment of the circumstances that led to the massive flight disruptions.
     The official said the committee has submitted its report on Friday evening.
     A source said copies of the report have been shared with the office of Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu and Civil Aviation Secretary Samir Kumar Sinha.
     Details about the report could not be immediately ascertained.
     Other members in the Brahmane-led panel were DGCA's Deputy Director General Amit Gupta, Senior Flight Operations Inspector Captain Kapil Manglik and Flight Operations Inspector Captain Rampal.
     Earlier this month, IndiGo cancelled more than 1,600 flights in a single day, and inadequate planning in implementing the revised pilot rest norms was a key reason for the disruptions.
     Following the disruptions, DGCA directed IndiGo, the country's largest airline, to reduce its winter schedule by 10 per cent and issued show-cause notices to the airline's CEO, Pieter Elbers, and COO, Isidre Porqueras.
     In the order dated December 5 on setting up the panel, it said that, prima facie, the situation indicates deficiencies in internal oversight, operational preparedness, and compliance planning, "warranting an independent examination".
     As per that DGCA (Directorate General of Civil Aviation) order, the regulator had issued repeated directions and advance instructions from time to time to the airline on timely preparation to implement the provisions related to the FDTL (Flight Duty Time Limitations) norms.
     The regulator had also observed the airline's inability to accurately forecast crew availability, conduct timely training, and realign rosters despite advance regulatory intimation, resulting in cascading delays and cancellations across its network beginning late November 2025 and leading to non-adherence to the directions.
     Subsequently, the watchdog held a review meeting with IndiGo, wherein the airline acknowledged that it had failed to anticipate the actual crew requirement under the revised norms and that significant planning and assessment gaps existed in implementing Phase-II of FDTL CAR 2024, as per the order.
     The Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR) pertaining to FDTL were implemented in two phases -- the first phase came into force from July 1, and the second from November 1.
     "This shortfall directly contributed to large-scale disruptions, with cancellations reaching 170-200 flights daily, severely affecting network integrity and passenger convenience. Where it was noticed in the month of November, the flight cancellations of IndiGo were maximum vis-a-vis other airlines," the order had said.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)