Chaos erupted across Indian airports this week as IndiGo, the nation’s largest airline, cancelled and delayed hundreds of flights, leaving thousands of passengers stranded and sparking widespread frustration. The disruption, which began on December 2, 2025, intensified on December 4, with over 1,200 flights cancelled nationwide, according to multiple reports from Reuters, PTI, and local outlets. The airline blamed a perfect storm of operational setbacks—ranging from technical glitches and adverse weather to new government-mandated rules for crew scheduling.
At the heart of the crisis was a sudden shortage of pilots, triggered by the implementation of stricter Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) intended to combat fatigue and improve safety. These regulations, phased in since July and November, increased mandatory rest periods for flight crews and sharply curtailed the number of night landings allowed per pilot. While good for safety, the new rules left IndiGo scrambling to fill its ambitious flight schedule, which covers more than 2,300 daily domestic and international routes and accounts for over 60% of India’s domestic air market.
The result? Mayhem at major hubs such as Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, and Pune. On December 4 alone, Delhi Airport confirmed 150 IndiGo cancellations—split evenly between arrivals and departures—while Hyderabad saw 37 flights axed, and Pune faced 16 cancellations and more than 19 severe delays. Across the country, more than 550 IndiGo flights were cancelled that day, and the airline warned that further disruptions would persist for several days as it worked to stabilize its operations.
According to PTI, passengers described scenes of “complete mayhem,” with delays stretching up to eight hours and little to no staff available to assist. One airport user vented on X (formerly Twitter), “I do not know what and when will happen—seems IndiGo management has vanished as there are no actions, nobody from IndiGo is present at all the gates, guidance and instructions to ground staff is missing, everything seems wrong, chaos and anarchy are the words which suit this situation.”
At Pune airport, the situation was particularly dire. With only 10 parking bays available, 11 IndiGo aircraft were left idling on the ground, clogging up the apron and forcing other airlines to divert or delay their flights. Pune airport director Santosh Dhoke explained, “The primary cause of the disruption has been the extended ground presence of multiple IndiGo aircraft awaiting availability of operating crew, resulting in the prolonged occupation of parking bays. This has severely constrained the bay availability at the airport, leading to sequential delays to subsequent arrivals and departures across all airlines.”
Passengers recounted harrowing waits inside planes after landing, sometimes for nearly five hours, as there were simply no free bays to park and deboard. Megh Gandhi, a flyer arriving from Ahmedabad, said, “My flight landed in Pune around 4:30am. The captain clearly said he had no clue when the deboarding would happen. He said even the ATC was not giving them any proper information. Finally, we deboarded around 7:45am.” Similar stories echoed from passengers on other delayed flights, with some unable to retrieve their checked baggage for hours after cancellations.
IndiGo’s troubles were not limited to logistical snarls. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India’s aviation watchdog, ordered an urgent investigation into the crisis and demanded that IndiGo submit a comprehensive roadmap. The DGCA’s requirements included plans for crew recruitment, training, roster restructuring, and detailed safety-risk assessments. The airline was also instructed to provide fortnightly progress updates and to urgently bolster its passenger-handling teams at affected airports. Real-time inspections by DGCA regional offices found that “IndiGo's passenger-handling manpower was inadequate to manage disruption-induced crowding,” according to a press note cited by ANI.
Minister of Civil Aviation Ram Mohan Naidu convened a high-level review with IndiGo’s senior management and government officials, expressing “clear displeasure regarding the manner in which the situation has been handled by the airline,” the ministry stated. Naidu directed IndiGo to take immediate, flyer-centric steps and demanded rapid improvements in communication and support for affected travelers.
In a statement issued to the press, IndiGo apologized for the widespread inconvenience, attributing the meltdown to “a multitude of unforeseen operational challenges” including minor technology glitches, winter schedule changes, adverse weather, increased congestion in the aviation system, and the sudden impact of new crew rostering rules. “The last two days have seen widespread disruption across IndiGo’s network and operations. We extend a heartfelt apology to all our customers and industry stakeholders who have been impacted by these events,” the airline said, adding that it was “working diligently and making all efforts with the support of MOCA, DGCA, BCAS, AAI and airport operators to reduce the cascading impact of these delays and restore normalcy.”
IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, in an internal letter to employees, acknowledged the company’s failure to live up to its customer service promises. “IndiGo's immediate goal is to normalise operations, bring punctuality back on track which is not an easy target,” he wrote, as accessed by Hindustan Times. The airline has assured the DGCA that full restoration of stable operations is expected by February 10, 2026, and that further cancellations will continue for the next two to three days as part of schedule stabilization efforts.
Passengers, meanwhile, continued to face confusion and distress. At Mumbai airport, long queues formed as travelers sought refunds and missing baggage. Social media was flooded with images and videos of stranded flyers, abandoned luggage, and crowded terminals. Popular YouTuber Arun Prabhudesai lamented, “One of my biggest events of the year is in danger of getting cancelled because of your absolute incompetence,” while another influencer, Elvish Yadav, posted a photo of the chaos with the caption, “Waah Indigo Waah.”
To make matters worse, a bomb threat email targeting an inbound IndiGo flight from Sharjah to Hyderabad on December 4 forced authorities to activate emergency protocols and divert flights, although no credible threat was ultimately found. The incident added another layer of anxiety to an already fraught situation.
Industry experts and pilot representatives pointed to deeper issues behind the crisis. Captain CS Randhawa, president of the Federation of Indian Pilots, told ANI that IndiGo’s rapid fleet expansion without corresponding increases in crew numbers, coupled with poor crew scheduling, had left the airline vulnerable. “Most of these flight disruptions, cancellations, and delays have been attributable to, firstly, the crew shortage,” he said. “Secondly, they have been inducting aircraft. It must be appreciated that when you induct an aircraft, you must have an adequate number of crews per aircraft.”
Political leaders, too, weighed in. MP Priyanka Chaturvedi criticized the airline for causing “massive passenger distress” and called for government intervention, highlighting concerns about limited competition in India’s aviation sector leading to higher fares and poor service.
As India’s aviation regulator and government continue to press for answers and improvements, the coming weeks will test IndiGo’s ability to restore its reputation for punctuality and reliability. For now, travelers are left hoping that the airline’s promise to return to “IndiGo Standard Time” is more than just a tagline.