DGCA sacks 4 flight inspectors over IndiGo's operational crisis
12 Dec 2025

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has dismissed four flight inspectors who were responsible for ensuring safety and operational compliance at IndiGo.

The decision comes after the airline canceled thousands of flights this month due to internal mismanagement of crew rosters, flight schedules, and inadequate communication, along with challenges in complying with tighter safety regulations.

The cancellations reached a peak on December 5 but have since declined, with IndiGo claiming operations have stabilized.

DGCA deploys teams to monitor IndiGo's operations
Oversight measures

To further monitor IndiGo's operations, the DGCA has sent two teams to its Gurugram office, according to NDTV.

The first team will look into fleet size, pilot strength, crew utilization, the total number of sectors affected due to crew shortage, and other operational aspects.

The second team will investigate issues arising from the crisis such as refund status and passenger compensation under Civil Aviation Requirements (CAR).

IndiGo ordered to reduce operations by 10%
Operational reduction

IndiGo has been directed to reduce its operations by 10%. This means over 200 flights will be canceled daily as the airline operates around 2,200 flights a day.

Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said this decision was taken after many passengers faced "severe inconvenience due to IndiGo's internal mismanagement of crew rosters, flight schedules and inadequate communication."

He said very strict action will be taken to set an "example."

IndiGo to compensate severely impacted passengers
Passenger compensation

On Thursday, IndiGo announced that passengers who were "severely impacted" between December 3-5 will be given ₹10,000 as compensation.

This compensation is in addition to the ₹5,000-₹10,000 promised under government guidelines for passengers whose flights were canceled within 24 hours of departure time.

On the same day, the aviation regulator summoned IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers to question him on the restoration of operations and the recruitment process.