The most shocking revelation has been the historical chaos created in the operation of IndiGo. IndiGo canceled thousands of flight tickets in November-December. The company had earlier sold tickets for these dates on a large scale through its schemes like Grand Runaway Fest, Getaway Sale and Black Friday Sale.

New FDTL rules were to come into effect from November 1, under which the working hours of pilots were to be reduced. Because of this the need for crew was going to increase. This information was received by the airline company months ago, but IndiGo neither increased the crew, nor adjusted the schedule, nor controlled the booking on these dates. On the contrary, the airline increased the bookings by selling tickets for these months at huge discounts.

Indigo’s entire network collapses due to crew shortage
As soon as the new rules were implemented, Indigo’s entire network collapsed due to shortage of crew. Flights started getting canceled suddenly. The passengers’ luggage was lost. Rostering broke down and there was chaos at the airports. Indigo is now giving clarifications about network reboot and operational stability, but the question remains, when the date of FDTL rules was fixed and the rules were already announced, then why did Indigo put lakhs of passengers in trouble by selling tickets on the same dates?

IndiGo’s calendar expose
The biggest irony of IndiGo’s operational crisis is that the tickets for the months of November-December for which the airline later canceled thousands of flights, were sold by the company in the first sale, and that too in several phases. For example, tickets for 15-18 August 2025 were sold under the Independence Day Sale scheme.

IndiGo kept the journey duration

IndiGo is accused of selling a lot of tickets for the months of 2025–26, due to which its flight system got badly disrupted due to the pressure of FDTL rules. From August 2025 itself, the airline had launched tickets for the travel period of November and December in the market. Grand Runaway Fest in September 2025 and Getaway Sale in early November. In both, seats from January to March 2026 were sold at huge discounts. After this, in the Black Friday Sale of the last week of November, a large part of the period from January to June 2026 was sold in advance booking.

That is, at the time when Indigo should have adjusted the schedule by anticipating crew shortage, rostering change and operational pressure due to the new FDTL rules, at the same time the company was taking advantage of the heavy booking by selling tickets for these months. This case has become a big example of not only operational failure but also failure of planning and haste in sale.

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IndiGo Crisis: IndiGo is facing one of the biggest operational breakdowns in its history. It is being called Indigo Crisis Unit on a large scale. More than 2000 flights have been canceled in just four days. For this reason, passengers all over India are facing uncertainty and delays. In the meantime, let us know how many types of aircraft Indigo has and which one is the most expensive.

indigo fleet

At present IndiGo operates 6 different categories of aircraft. With this, Indigo has more than 400 aircraft. IndiGo has Airbus A320-200, Airbus A320neo, Airbus A321neo, ATR 72-600, Boeing 777-300 ER, Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and Airbus A321-P2F.

Which is the most expensive plane?

The most expensive aircraft currently used by IndiGo is the Boeing 777-300 ER. Its list price is approximately $375.5 million. These wide body aircraft are mostly used on long distance routes and their operating costs are much higher than narrow body models. Right after this is the Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner. Its list price is approximately $292.5 million. However, let us tell you that Indigo usually operates leased aircraft. Because of this the initial cost reduces considerably. The base prices of these jets show how expensive wide body operations really are.

More expensive aircraft are coming in 2027

IndiGo has already placed orders for the Airbus A350-900. These can join the fleet from 2027. With a list price of more than $300 million per aircraft, the A350 will become the most expensive aircraft IndiGo has ever owned.

But in the meantime, it is important to understand that airlines rarely pay the list price. Discounts of 40% to 60% are often available on large purchase orders. This means that the actual transaction price is almost halved.

Why are wide body aircraft so expensive

Wide body aircraft like the 777 and 787 come with advanced avionics, long-range fuel systems, larger engines and high-end cabin configurations. These consume more fuel and require more maintenance. Along with this, the cost of crew is also high. Whereas narrow body aircraft like A320neo remain cheaper for domestic routes. However, a wide body is necessary for international expansion.

Also read: How much more powerful is S-500 than S-400, how much better will India’s air defense become with this?

The country’s largest airline Indigo was also seen facing a major operational crisis on Sunday. Thousands of passengers got stranded due to large-scale cancellation of flights and an atmosphere of chaos was created at many airports. Cancellation of flights continues in many big cities including Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Chandigarh. Passengers say that they are facing a lot of trouble due to cancellation of flights without prior notice.

Many major flights canceled from Delhi airport
Flights from Delhi to many big cities were canceled today. These include:

• Delhi to Bengaluru – Canceled
• Delhi to Jaipur – Canceled
• Delhi to Nagpur – Canceled
• Delhi to Gwalior – Canceled
• Delhi to Chennai – Canceled

Other flights are also expected to be affected.

Biggest crisis at Hyderabad airport, 115 flights canceled

The situation remains critical at Hyderabad’s Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, Shamshabad. Here IndiGo canceled a total of 115 flights today, which include:

• 54 arriving flights
• 61 departing flights

Passengers were unaware of this decision taken early in the morning, due to which long queues, crowd and complaints continue at the airport.

Lucknow airport also affected, queues of passengers formed

There is a situation of cancellation of flights in Lucknow also. Here today 5 Indigo flights were canceled. Long lines of passengers were seen at the Indigo counter at the airport. Passengers allege that they were not given correct information on time.

8 flights canceled from Mumbai airport
Passengers also had to face problems at Mumbai airport. So far 8 Indigo flights have been canceled here. The canceled flights include:

Mumbai-Goa

Mumbai–Jabalpur

Mumbai–Ahmedabad

Mumbai–Madurai

Mumbai-Ayodhya Dham

Mumbai-Patna

Mumbai–Kanpur

Mumbai–Gorakhpur

However, the Mumbai–Bengaluru flight and almost all international flights are on time.

Operation affected in Chandigarh also
3 Indigo flights were also canceled from Chandigarh Airport. Passengers are facing long waits for alternative flights and refunds.

Displeasure among passengers
There is clearly visible anger among passengers due to cancellation of flights. Many passengers said that they were not informed in time, are facing problems in getting the booking money refunded and the fares of alternative flights have increased significantly. Indigo has appealed to the passengers to be patient and said that the situation will be normalized soon.

Thousands of passengers faced problems due to cancellation of Indigo flights on 6 December. Meanwhile, the Aviation Ministry directed IndiGo to complete the process of refund of tickets for canceled flights by the evening. That means you will get your ticket money back by 7th December.

Refund will be available till the night of 7th December
The Civil Aviation Ministry has asked IndiGo to complete the ticket refund process for passengers affected by the disruption in flights by 8 pm on Sunday night. Also said that the airline should ensure that all the luggage separated from the passengers due to flight cancellation is delivered within the next 48 hours.

IndiGo was also directed to set up special assistance and refund facility centers for passengers. The automatic refund process will continue until operations are completely stabilized.

Additionally, the ministry said airlines should ensure that passengers’ lost luggage due to flight cancellations or delays is traced and delivered to them within the next 48 hours.

Aviation Ministry gave information to PM Modi
The Aviation Ministry has informed PM Modi in the Indigo case. In fact, continuous meetings are being held by the ministry for the last two days. The government is preparing to impose heavy fine on the airline.

There was a mess due to the new rules of the government
The new pilot duty rules (FDTL Phase-2) of the Central Government came into force and IndiGo was not at all prepared for it. The Pilot Union filed a petition in the Delhi High Court in January 2024. In this, the issue of flight safety was raised due to excessive working hours and fatigue of pilots. After the order of the High Court, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) made changes in the Flight Duty Time Limitation i.e. FDTL rules. These rules were to be implemented in two parts.

On July 1, 2025, Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules were implemented to give rest to the pilots. Under this, it was made mandatory for airline companies to give pilots 48 hours of rest instead of 36 hours a week, i.e. two days weekly rest. During this period, there was a ban on counting any holiday as weekly rest. The objective was very good that the less tired the pilot is, the safer the flight will be. But these rules reduced the availability of pilots by 15-20%.

In the second phase of FDTL, from November 1, DGCA had also banned continuous night shifts of pilots and other crew members.

• Earlier, rest was available for 36 hours in a week, now 48 hours is mandatory. This means each pilot can fly about one day less in a week.
• Night duty was earlier considered to be from 12 noon to 5 am, now till 6 am. That means one more hour more.
• A pilot can do only 2 night landings in a week, earlier there was a relaxation of up to 6.
• Night duty cannot be done for more than two consecutive nights.
• The most dangerous rule was that if the flight went on for even 1 minute after 12 o’clock in the night, then the entire duty was considered as night duty and the pilot would not be able to fly 1-2 flights in the morning the next day.

This meant only one thing: a pilot is no longer able to fly as many flights as he could before.

More than 400 flights canceled today
On December 5, more than 1,000 flights of the country’s largest airline Indigo were canceled and the same situation remained on December 6. On Saturday, more than 400 flights were canceled at the airports of many cities including the four major airports of the country, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bengaluru. The ministry said that any delay or non-compliance in the refund process will take immediate regulatory action. More than 2,000 flights have been canceled in the last 4 days. On average 500 flights are getting delayed every day.

The central government has come on the backfoot on Friday after the country’s largest airline company Indigo canceled more than 1700 flights in the last 4 days. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has given temporary relief to airlines, especially IndiGo, till 10 February 2026. The decision of not giving any leave in lieu of weekly rest was withdrawn.

Indigo flights are being badly affected for the last several days. Today i.e. 5th December was the worst day, when more than 1000 flights were cancelled. More than half the schedules are being affected every day. From tomorrow (6th December) the cancellations will come down to less than 1000. That means getting exemption in FDTL from DGCA is helping in recovery. Indigo says that it will take time till December 15 for flight operations to become normal.

Government formed high level committee
Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said that the government has also ordered a high-level inquiry into this entire incident, so that the cause of this crisis and responsibility can be fixed. He said that Indigo flights will become completely normal in the next three days.

IndiGo CEO Peter Albers said, ‘We apologize to everyone for the cancellation and delay of IndiGo flights. The entire system is rebooting. It will take time for the situation to become normal. The situation will become normal from 10 to 15 December. There have been more problems in the last few days. Today more than 1 thousand flights have been cancelled.

Flight ticket prices increased 10 times
In search of alternative flights, passengers have to buy tickets at up to 10 times the normal price. According to booking site MakeMyTrip, the cheapest flight fare from Delhi to Bangalore on December 6 is more than Rs 40,000, while the fare of some flights is up to Rs 80,000.

In fact, Indigo is facing shortage of crew members for the fourth consecutive day on Friday. Due to this, more than 1000 flights were canceled at many airports including Delhi, Bengaluru, Pune, Hyderabad. Passengers have been waiting for the flight for 24 hours. At Delhi airport, passengers were seen arguing and fighting with the staff and security personnel over water, food and essential items.

Indigo claims- problems due to government rules
Indigo claims that due to this rule there was a shortage of pilots and other staff and the entire operation was affected. It will take time to fix it. DGCA had implemented the second phase of Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) from November 1, rules related to the work of pilots and other crew members. The first phase came into effect on 1 July.

In the rules of the second phase of FDTL, it was made mandatory for the airline companies to give 48 hours of rest in a week to the pilots, i.e. two days weekly rest. During this period, there was a ban on counting any holiday as weekly rest. DGCA had also banned continuous night shifts of pilots and other crew members.

India’s largest airline IndiGo, which flies more than 1 crore passengers every month, is going through its worst phase for the last 10-12 days. In the beginning of December suddenly 400-600 flights started getting canceled every day. There was uproar at big airports like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Indore. People stood in queues for hours, ticket prices doubled and tripled and anger erupted on social media. The question in everyone’s mind is what is happening with Indigo?

Government has taken 7 major actions so far in Indigo case

1. On 4 December 2025, Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu held a major review meeting. This included senior management of MoCA, DGCA, AAI and Indigo. The minister said that passenger facilities should be taken full care of and the situation should be brought back to normal immediately.
2. Understanding the operational problems of IndiGo, DGCA gave a one-time relaxation, which will provide flexibility in some FDTL rules till 10 February 2026. DGCA will review this exemption every 15 days and will take continuous improvement reports from IndiGo. Especially on crew shortage and hiring.
3. DGCA has appealed to all pilot associations to extend full support to IndiGo in view of the huge demand during winter vacation and wedding season.
4. DGCA gave further relief to IndiGo by allowing pilots who were currently engaged in training or other work to be sent for flying duty. Currently, 12 FOIs (DGCA officers who are themselves on deputation from IndiGo) have also been allowed to fly for a week.
5. 12 licensed FOIs of IndiGo, who have less seniority, have been relieved from flying duty by DGCA. So that they can help in the investigation and inspection of DGCA.
6. DGCA has also deployed its team in IndiGo’s control center, which is monitoring the flights in real time. Especially on delays, cancellations and passenger convenience.
7. DGCA has formed a four-member inquiry committee, which will find out why such a major operational lapse took place in IndiGo. The committee will also decide who had what responsibility and how effective the measures for further improvement are.

There was a mess due to the new rules of the government
The new pilot duty rules (FDTL Phase-2) of the Central Government came into force and IndiGo was not at all prepared for it. The Pilot Union filed a petition in the Delhi High Court in January 2024. In this, the issue of flight safety was raised due to excessive working hours and fatigue of pilots. After the order of the High Court, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) made changes in the Flight Duty Time Limitation i.e. FDTL rules. These rules were to be implemented in two parts.

On July 1, 2025, Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules were implemented to give rest to the pilots. Under this, it was made mandatory for airline companies to give pilots 48 hours of rest instead of 36 hours a week, i.e. two days weekly rest. During this period, there was a ban on counting any holiday as weekly rest. The objective was very good that the less tired the pilot is, the safer the flight will be. But these rules reduced the availability of pilots by 15-20%.

In the second phase of FDTL, from November 1, DGCA had also banned continuous night shifts of pilots and other crew members.

• Earlier, rest was available for 36 hours in a week, now 48 hours is mandatory. This means each pilot can fly about one day less in a week.
• Night duty was earlier considered to be from 12 noon to 5 am, now till 6 am. That means one more hour more.
• A pilot can do only 2 night landings in a week, earlier there was a relaxation of up to 6.
• Night duty cannot be done for more than two consecutive nights.
• The most dangerous rule was that if the flight went on for even 1 minute after 12 o’clock in the night, then the entire duty was considered as night duty and the pilot would not be able to fly 1-2 flights in the morning the next day.

This meant only one thing: a pilot is no longer able to fly as many flights as he could before.

1700 flights canceled in last 4 days
In the DGCA meeting, IndiGo itself admitted that it had miscalculated the actual need of pilots. Made a mistake in assuming that crew availability will reduce after the implementation of the new rules. There were delays and shortcomings in making the roster and preparations for Phase-2 were incomplete. After the introduction of new rules, Indigo could not overcome the shortage of pilots and other staff and in the last 4 days Indigo canceled more than 1700 flights.

Maximum 225 flights have been canceled in Delhi. 32 flights were canceled in Pune. 197 flights were canceled at Hyderabad Airport in 3 days, while 155 flights were canceled at Shamshabad Airport. Bengaluru: 102 flights have been cancelled.

The new rules have the biggest impact on Indigo.

The entire business model of IndiGo is based on more flights, lower prices and faster turnout. More than 70% of its flights operate at night or till late night. There are frequent flights on short routes. When the new rules came, there was a sudden shortage of pilots.

The biggest mistake was that despite getting 18-20 months time, IndiGo did not increase the number of pilots as per the new rules. Rest of the airlines like Air India, Vistara and Akasa Air had already recruited pilots. Indigo could not manage this change.

As a result, hundreds of flights were canceled every day from the last week of November to the first week of December. Thousands of passengers remained stranded at the airport hungry and thirsty for 24 hours. Flight fares have skyrocketed. The company’s shares fell by 10-12% in the stock market.

The government found a middle solution
DGCA had to bow down due to severe problems of passengers and fear of collapse of the entire aviation system. Giving immediate relief on 5 December 2025, it was announced that now if the flight leaves even a little after 12 midnight, it will not be considered as full night duty. This means that the pilot will be able to fly the morning flight the next day comfortably. The decision of not giving any leave in lieu of weekly rest was withdrawn. The Civil Aviation Minister has directed all the airlines to give full refund in case of flight cancellation. Also, the stranded people have been asked to make proper arrangements to stay in hotels.

But this exemption was not given for free. DGCA has kept strict vigil on Indigo-

• Every 15 days, a complete report will have to be given as to how many pilots were increased and how the roster was corrected.
• Within 30 days, a complete roadmap will have to be given as to how the new rules will be followed 100% by 10 February 2026.
• There will not be even an inch of relaxation in all other safety related rules.

Then what will happen next?
Indigo has apologized and said that most of the flights will become normal by 10-15 December and everything will be completely fine by January. The company is now rapidly hiring pilots and changing the rostering system. But this whole matter has given a big lesson that aviation in India is growing so fast that only one company has more than 60% of the market. If it falters, the entire aviation system falters. Now the government and other airlines have also understood that thousands of new pilots and hundreds of new aircraft are needed in the next 5 years, otherwise such crises will occur again and again.

Cancellation of Indigo Airlines flights for the fourth consecutive day at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Telangana broke the patience of passengers. More than 197 flights have been canceled since the crisis started on December 2. This included 31 flights on 3 December, 68 flights on 4 December and 92 flights on 5 December. Technical glitches, crew shortage, absence of pilots and airport congestion brought the entire network to a standstill. DGCA has started investigation, but passengers are not being given complete information nor are there any other options.

Passengers stranded at airport hungry and thirsty for 24 hours
Thousands of passengers from many states and countries are stranded at the airport for more than 24 hours. A 70-year-old couple returning from Mumbai to Hyderabad was kept at the gate for 14 hours, neither did they get food nor a place to stay. A passenger said, ‘Our luggage had been checked-in, but due to cancellation of flights, we remained stuck here. Now waiting for the goods for 16 hours.

A group going to Pune had to take alternative routes by cab and train, while a businessman arriving in London complained that he was supposed to reach home on the morning of December 5, but was stuck at the airport for 24 hours, hungry and thirsty. Many passengers reached the airport directly from the hospital, but their plans were ruined due to flight cancellation.

Devotees were delayed in reaching the temple, did not get darshan
The biggest problem is being faced by the devotees who were going for darshan in many cities. More than 50 devotees, who arrived on time for the annual festival of Sabarimala temple, had come from several states in South India. A devotee said, ‘The time to visit the temple has passed. Due to the delay of Indigo Airlines, questions are being raised on faith. Devotees have been protesting at the gate for the last 12 hours, but there is no result.

Passengers and staff clash at the airport
Passengers waiting for several hours clashed with the airport staff, due to which security forces had to be deployed. In a video, passengers were raising slogans of ‘Give food, give hotel’. Indigo issued a statement citing glitches in operations, but did not give any specific time. RGIA tweeted on X and advised to contact the airlines, but the ground staff has no response.

155 flights canceled at Shamshabad airport
This is the situation not only at Hyderabad Airport but also at Shamshabad Airport. 155 flights have been canceled from Shamshabad airport in the last 4 days. According to airport sources, so far 84 departure and 71 arrival flights have been cancelled. Indigo Airlines has canceled the maximum number of flights. The airport administration has appealed for cooperation, but it is becoming difficult to control the angry passengers.

SP MP Dimple Yadav has expressed concern over the crisis of delay and cancellation of Indigo flights that continues for the fourth consecutive day at Delhi Airport. He said that the kind of environment created in the airlines is causing a lot of trouble to the passengers and the government should immediately intervene. Yadav clearly said that whatever support is required from the government to Indigo, it should be given so that the problems of the passengers can be reduced.

IndiGo’s turmoil has affected thousands of passengers at major airports across the country. More than 400 flights were reported canceled on Friday, December 5, 2025 alone. Delays and cancellations over the past four days have caused massive congestion, long queues and anger among passengers. The airline has issued an apology saying that its team is working to normalize operations as soon as possible.

#WATCH Delhi: SP MP Dimple Yadav said, “The way the environment is today in the airlines and the passengers are facing problems, the government should try to improve it as soon as possible. Whatever support IndiGo Airlines needs from the government should be given because it is the passengers who are facing a lot of trouble… pic.twitter.com/VasQJKuSVR

— ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) December 5, 2025

What does Indigo say on canceled flights?

Indigo has attributed its delays and canceled flights to several reasons. According to the company, minor technology glitches, winter schedule changes, bad weather, air traffic congestion and new FDTL crew rostering rules have had a compounding negative impact on the entire system. The airline also said that it was not possible to anticipate such an impact, hence the sudden pressure on operations. On December 4, IndiGo’s on-time performance at six metro airports was only 8.5%.

Steps should be taken immediately – Dimple Yadav

Dimple Yadav asked the government to take immediate steps to provide relief to the passengers. He says that the sooner the airline gets technical, operational and staffing support, the sooner the situation will improve. According to ANI, he also added that passengers are facing the most problems at this time and the government’s priority should be to provide them facilities. Keeping in mind the interests of passengers, this issue is being considered serious at the national level and updates are being issued continuously by the airlines till the situation becomes normal.

SP MP Dimple Yadav has expressed concern over the crisis of delay and cancellation of Indigo flights that continues for the fourth consecutive day at Delhi Airport. He said that the kind of environment created in the airlines is causing a lot of trouble to the passengers and the government should immediately intervene. Yadav clearly said that whatever support is required from the government to Indigo, it should be given so that the problems of the passengers can be reduced.

IndiGo’s turmoil has affected thousands of passengers at major airports across the country. More than 400 flights were reported canceled on Friday, December 5, 2025 alone. Delays and cancellations over the past four days have caused massive congestion, long queues and anger among passengers. The airline has issued an apology saying that its team is working to normalize operations as soon as possible.

#WATCH Delhi: SP MP Dimple Yadav said, “The way the environment is today in the airlines and the passengers are facing problems, the government should try to improve it as soon as possible. Whatever support IndiGo Airlines needs from the government should be given because it is the passengers who are facing a lot of trouble… pic.twitter.com/VasQJKuSVR

— ANI_HindiNews (@AHindinews) December 5, 2025

What does Indigo say on canceled flights?

Indigo has attributed its delays and canceled flights to several reasons. According to the company, minor technology glitches, winter schedule changes, bad weather, air traffic congestion and new FDTL crew rostering rules have had a compounding negative impact on the entire system. The airline also said that it was not possible to anticipate such an impact, hence the sudden pressure on operations. On December 4, IndiGo’s on-time performance at six metro airports was only 8.5%.

Steps should be taken immediately – Dimple Yadav

Dimple Yadav asked the government to take immediate steps to provide relief to the passengers. He says that the sooner the airline gets technical, operational and staffing support, the sooner the situation will improve. According to ANI, he also added that passengers are facing the most problems at this time and the government’s priority should be to provide them facilities. Keeping in mind the interests of passengers, this issue is being considered serious at the national level and updates are being issued continuously by the airlines till the situation becomes normal.