The DGCA hit IndiGo with a 5% flight reduction—about 110 daily cuts. Why? It’s the pilot fatigue rule fight. Get the raw facts on the Centre’s biggest crackdown on India’s aviation market leader.
Look, the Centre is finally done talking. The Civil Aviation Minister, Ram Mohan Naidu, he already stood up in the Rajya Sabha and said this whole mess? It was an “internal crisis” at IndiGo. Not weather. Not a major system failure outside their control. It was their screw-up.
And then the hammer dropped.
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The 5% Chop
The DGCA—that’s the aviation regulator, the boss of all the airlines, let’s be real—they slashed IndiGo’s winter schedule. They cut it by 5 per cent.
The math is simple: IndiGo runs around 2,200 flights daily. A 5% cut means about 110 flights are gone, wiped clean off the board every single day.
Why this happened? It’s basically the DGCA saying, You promised us you could handle this, and you failed.
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The Approval vs. Reality: IndiGo had an approved winter schedule that was 6% bigger than their last summer schedule. They were allowed to scale up, get more departures.
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The Fail: But the data shows they were already failing. The DGCA noted that in November 2025 alone, they cancelled 951 flights. And they didn’t even have the required number of operational aircraft or crew ready for the schedule they had promised.
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They increased their flights. And then the chaos followed. They just weren’t able to run the operation efficiently. That’s the official word.
The Root Cause: Safety Rules
The actual thing that triggered all this? Pilot fatigue rules.
The government brought in new Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules, designed to make flying safer. More rest for pilots, tighter limits on night landings. It’s common sense, keeping everyone safe.
IndiGo, which is all about high-frequency flying and keeping aircraft moving—minimizing downtime, those too—they just weren’t ready. They didn’t hire enough pilots. When the new rules kicked in, they ran short of crew immediately. That caused the cancellations. Then it spiralled. Confusion. Heartbreak. Wedding plans ruined.
The DGCA is now telling IndiGo: You have to reduce the schedule. Especially on those high-demand, high-frequency sectors. Those freed-up slots? The government is giving them to other airlines. That’s a huge deal. It’s essentially a fine, a massive penalty on their market dominance.
Naidu made it clear in Parliament: “We will take strict action. We will set an example for every airline.” They’re not taking this lightly. And they want more competition in the sector.
The opposition walked out, saying the response wasn’t enough. The passengers? They’re still waiting to see if this action actually brings relief, if ticket prices come down, or if the next flight they book will be cancelled, too. It’s an ongoing situation, honestly.
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