JAMMU/NEW DELHI: Passengers across the country continued to face severe inconvenience on Thursday as IndiGo struggled with large-scale disruptions in operations for the third consecutive day.
Chaos and frustration were witnessed at Jammu Airport, where travellers complained of repeated delays on flights to Delhi.
“My flight from Jammu to Delhi has been delayed by around four hours. I am not sure whether it will depart today,” said a distressed passenger. Another traveller added that their flight, originally scheduled for 10:30 am, had been pushed to 3:30 pm.
Out of 11 IndiGo flights operating from Jammu, one was cancelled, eight faced delays and only two landed on time, officials said.
Nationwide, the situation remained grim. IndiGo, the country’s largest airline, cancelled over 300 domestic and international flights by Thursday afternoon, with hundreds more delayed at airports including Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru. The disruptions followed a steep drop in the airline’s On-Time Performance (OTP) to 19.7% on Wednesday.
What led to the crisis?
Sources attributed the disruptions to a shortage of pilots and crew, further strained by the enforcement of Flight Duty Time Limit (FDTL) norms. Rescheduling and crew management issues triggered mass cancellations and delays across the network. Angry passengers at several airports accused the airline of failing to provide timely updates, with some staging protests near booking counters.
DGCA rejects IndiGo’s justification
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) rejected IndiGo’s explanation on the crisis, stating that the updated norms had been in process for six months and that crew management falls entirely under airline responsibility. The aviation regulator has demanded a time-bound corrective plan from IndiGo.
As the situation remains uncertain, passengers continue to grapple with last-minute changes and long waiting hours, awaiting normalisation of operations.
