According to a report by Indian Express, famous personalities are included in the board of Indigo. The executive role on IndiGo’s board is Rahul Bhatia, group managing director of InterGlobe Enterprises and co-founder of the country’s largest airline. Amitabh Kant is also on the board, who till recently was India’s G20 Sherpa. Former SEBI Chairman Damodar, former Trans World Airlines lawyer Mike Whittaker, former Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa and Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Company managing partner Pallavi Shroff are included. IndiGo Chairman Vikram Mehta is also on the board, who has previously been the Chairman of Shell Group of Companies. Despite people having such a strong background, such a big mistake gives rise to many questions.
Why were FDTL rules not implemented?
The real concern is about the new FDTL rules, which have been made regarding the rest and duty time of pilots. These rules were notified by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation in January 2024 and were initially to be implemented from June 1, 2024. But due to opposition from airlines companies, it was postponed to March 2024. Later it was told by the government and DGCA that these rules will be implemented in two phases from 1 July 2025 and 1 November 2025. Information about this change was also given to Delhi High Court in April this year. Despite this, the question is being raised whether a big airline like IndiGo had started preparations for implementing these rules in time or not and whether the board had regularly sought updates from the management on this.
When answers were sought from key members of the board regarding the crisis in IndiGo, no response was received from most of the people. A detailed list of questions was sent to Mike Whitaker and senior lawyer Pallavi Shroff, while messages were also sent to Vikram Mehta, former Air Chief BS Dhanoa and former SEBI chairman Damodaran, but no one responded. Amitabh Kant definitely replied, but he refused to comment saying that he had recently joined the board and it would not be appropriate for him to comment on this topic. He advised that this matter should be discussed with the Chairman and CEO.
Question on the responsibility of the board
Many aviation sector experts and former government officials have raised questions on the responsibility of the board regarding this matter. He says that if the potential shortage of pilots and the challenges arising due to new rules had been identified at the right time, perhaps this crisis could have been avoided.
A former senior bureaucrat and corporate governance expert raised questions about how closely the board’s seven-member ‘risk management committee’ actually monitored the progress of the preparations. This committee was headed by Greg Saretsky and apart from the CEO, it included members like retired Air Marshal Dhanoa, Mike Whittaker, Damodaran, Amitabh Kant and Anil Parashar. Despite the presence of such experienced people, if the preparation is not done properly, then it is a serious question in itself.
It has also come to light that the new FDTL rules are not mentioned anywhere in the annual reports of IndiGo for the last two years, i.e. 2023-24 and 2024-25. Even in the company’s risk management reports, there is no specific discussion regarding these rules. Whereas in the annual report of 2024-25, it has definitely been written that the company remains in constant touch with the regulatory and government bodies and keeps itself prepared according to the changing rules. That is, preparation and vigilance were claimed on paper, but the ground reality does not seem to match this.
DGCA’s role is under question
Questions have also been raised regarding the role of DGCA whether the regulator could have sensed the possibility of this crisis in time or not. On this, sources say that both the government and DGCA were surprised by the irregularities on such a large scale. However, DGCA has said in its clarification that it had instructed Indigo from time to time to be prepared for new rules. In its order dated December 5, DGCA has clarified that it had repeatedly issued instructions and advance notices to IndiGo to implement the new civil aviation requirements, so that the preparations could be completed on time.
