Indigo Cancellation Crisis Realty: The role of Indigo management is under question regarding the cancellation crisis. The question that is constantly being raised regarding the crisis is whether this crisis is the result of a well-planned conspiracy by Indigo? Was IndiGo trying to put pressure on the Aviation Ministry and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) through this crisis on the issue of new rules of Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL)? In response to these questions, Indigo CEO Peter Albers first gave clarification through video. And then, Chairman Vikram Mehta released a video and said that all these allegations against the airline are wrong.
But, during the investigation, some things have come to light, which are enough to prove all the claims of Indigo wrong. According to ministry sources, all the airlines were given enough time to comply with the new rules of FDTL. All the airlines including IndiGo knew that the second phase of FDTL was going to be implemented on 1st November. Before the implementation of FDTL rules and in the month of November, several rounds of talks were held with all the airlines including IndiGo regarding compliance. DGCA talked to all the airlines. Everyone said that we are implementing everything. Indigo had also said that we are FDTL compliant and we do not have any problem.
He told that in any meeting of DGCA, not even once did Indigo say that they had any kind of problem. All the airlines were operating well in the month of November. There were some average cancellations in November, DGCA was keeping an eye on them. A meeting was also held between DGCA and Indigo on 1st December regarding FDTL. In this meeting, some clarifications were sought regarding FDTL. Clarification was discussed during the meeting, but there was no discussion from Indigo side regarding the shortage of pilots and cabin crew. IndiGo never said in any meeting that there was any crew shortage issue with them.
These 4 things became a thorn in the neck for Indigo
- Questions raised regarding non-hiring of pilots
According to ministry sources, IndiGo has not hired any new pilot for the last six months, even though the company knew that rostering would become very strict after the new FDTL rules. Despite this, Indigo did not pay any attention to the availability and hiring of crew. In such a situation, stopping hiring is considered a serious mistake of the management. Due to this mistake of Indigo, the shortage of pilots increased, which had a direct impact on flight operations. - Why was information about flight cancellation not given in advance?
A big question of DGCA is that when the internal operations were deteriorating and delays and cancellations were clearly visible in the system, then why were the passengers not informed in time. Thousands of passengers reached the airport. During the conversation he came to know that the flight could not operate. If IndiGo already knew that crew management was failing, then why was it allowed to reach such a level? - Why were passengers misled in the name of flight operations?
DGCA’s question is also that when IndiGo management knew internally that the crew was not available, then why was it told to the passengers that the flights would operate. This action of the airline created confusion among the passengers and they had to face trouble at the airport for hours. The question is, whose responsibility was it to update the information and tell the truth to the passengers at the right time and why did IndiGo fail in this? - After all, why did IndiGo allow the matter to reach this stage?
The serious question before IndiGo is that if the management knew that there were problems in rostering, crew availability and FDTL compliance, then why did they allow the operations to reach a level where large-scale cancellations were unstoppable. This clearly happened due to the airline’s lack of planning and timely action. This situation could have been avoided in a better way, but why did IndiGo let the situation deteriorate instead of handling it?
The reason for cancellation of IndiGo flights is not due to the new FDTL rules, but due to internal rostering irregularities of the airline. FDTL rules were implemented after discussions with all stakeholders. Indigo had also promised to completely follow the rules, but due to internal shortcomings, a crisis arose and passengers had to face a lot of trouble. DGCA has issued a show-cause notice and a four-member committee is investigating the matter. After investigation, strict action will be taken against the culprits. He clearly said that no matter how big an airline is, harassing passengers will not be tolerated. , Ram Mohan Naidu, Civil Aviation Minister
Answers to these questions are putting Indigo in the dock
What will be the role of the four-member committee of DGCA formed by the ministry?
DGCA has formed a four-member committee so that this entire matter can be investigated in depth and correct and factual answers to all the questions can be revealed. This committee will review the entire operation of IndiGo, which includes crew rostering, flight scheduling, pilot management and internal communication management. The purpose of this investigation is to find out where the mistake occurred and at what level the mistake occurred. After the report came, the government has clearly said that if anyone’s negligence is proved then action will definitely be taken against him.
Did Indigo not give any information to the regulator despite getting several opportunities from DGCA?
DGCA says that they were in touch with IndiGo since November and were discussing the new FDTL rules with all the airlines. During this period, whenever DGCA asked IndiGo about their status, the airline said that everything is normal and they are going to comply with the FDTL rules. Even when DGCA held a meeting with IndiGo on December 1, nothing was communicated from the airline’s side. In such a situation, this crisis is being considered as a serious failure of IndiGo management, because if correct information was given in time, then both passengers and the system could have avoided major problems.
Is it the responsibility of DGCA to look after the roster and daily operations of the airlines?
In response to this question, the ministry says that the job of DGCA is to create safety norms, monitor them and keep the airlines within the limits of the rules. But the airlines are responsible for handling crew management, pilot roster, internal scheduling and operation management. The ministry says that DGCA cannot monitor the internal systems of any airline on a daily basis. If an airline is not able to handle its own operations, the entire burden cannot be placed on the regulator.
When everything was fine in November, then why did there suddenly be an operational crisis in December?
According to the ministry, IndiGo’s operations were normal till November. Barring minor cancellations, there was no indication of any major operational crisis. The airline was also claiming that it had enough crew and the new rules would not cause any special problems to them. So when suddenly thousands of flights started getting canceled in the beginning of December. The reason for cancellation was said to be lack of crew. Everyone found this answer of Indigo shocking. According to the ministry, if Indigo had told the truth in time, many problems could have been controlled earlier.
