Still far from normalcy: IndiGo board steps in, forms crisis mgmt group

Board-led team includes chairman, ex-FAA chief, Amitabh Kant; ₹610 cr in refunds processed as airline eyes Dec 10 stability

The board of directors of InterGlobe Aviation Limited, which operates IndiGo, has set up a crisis management group (CMG) to help normalise operations and ensure refunds for the large number of flight cancellations over the past several days, the 

beleaguered carrier said on Sunday. 

Passengers continued to face disruption as India’s largest airline cancelled around 650 flights on Sunday, slightly fewer than the roughly 735 scrapped on Saturday. 

Before the crisis, IndiGo operated about 2,300 flights a day. 

The disruption came after the airline was caught unprepared, with insufficient pilots on its roster, to fully comply with the new Flight Duty Time Limitation norms, which came into force on November 1 to ensure more humane working hours for flight crew. Meanwhile, IndiGo’s Chief Pilot (line operations) Rahul Patil directed pilots that from Sunday onwards they must issue a formal apology announcement from the cockpit on each flight, stating: “We are truly sorry for everything that you had to go through.” 

In a video message to employees on Sunday, IndiGo Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Pieter Elbers said the airline’s reboot, which began on Friday, had “worked well”.

 

The IndiGo CEO said operations were returning to normal “step by step”. The airline expects to “stabilise” its flight network by December 10. 

Meanwhile, Delhi International Airport Limited (DIAL), which manages India’s largest airport in the capital city, stated on X that IndiGo flights “may continue to experience delays” and advised passengers to check the latest flight status before heading to the airport.

 

In a statement, IndiGo said its board of directors met on the first day the cancellations and delays began. The members, it said, received a detailed briefing from the management on the nature and extent of the crisis.

 

"This meeting was followed up with a session confined to only board members at which, it was decided to set up a CMG comprising amongst others the Chairman Vikram Singh Mehta; Board Directors, Gregg Saretsky, Mike Whitaker, and Amitabh Kant, and CEO Pieter Elbers," it added.

 

The CMG, according to IndiGo, has been meeting regularly to monitor the situation and was being constantly updated by the management of the measures being undertaken to restore normal operations.

 

“In addition, there have been multiple telephonic discussions, including with directors who are not members of the CMG. The objective of these meetings and exchanges is to address, as quickly as practically possible, the hardships suffered by our customers and other stakeholders while also restoring operational integrity across the airline’s network expeditiously," it said.

 

The board of directors, IndiGo said, is doing everything possible to take care of the challenges faced by the customers and to ensure refunds on cancellation and offer waivers on cancellation/rescheduling during the period of crisis.

 

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) said IndiGo’s performance showed steady improvement on Sunday, with flight schedules moving back towards “normal” levels.

 

“IndiGo’s flight operations have increased from 706 on December 5 to 1,565 on December 6 and are likely to reach up to 1,650 by the end of today,” it noted.

 

The ministry said the airline processed refunds of about ₹610 crore for cancelled and severely delayed flights. IndiGo has also been asked to trace and deliver all baggage separated from passengers due to the disruptions within 48 hours. “With this push, IndiGo has successfully delivered 3,000 pieces of baggage to passengers across India as of yesterday (Saturday)," the MoCA mentioned.

 

The ministry asserted that airport directors from Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, and Goa have confirmed “normal conditions” across terminals on Sunday.

 

In his message to employees, Elbers said: “In my earlier messages, I conveyed that we would be rebooting the system Friday, take a significant number of cancellations and start afresh on Saturday. That has worked well by operating some 1,500 flights yesterday as compared to only 700 on Friday."

 

"Also, we have been able to execute the cancellations at an earlier stage; so customers don’t show up at the airport in case their flights are being cancelled. It gives us all the confidence that step by step, we are getting back,” he noted.

 

“We are receiving and do much appreciate the support from the aviation ecosystem in India — the government, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, the Central Industrial Security Force, the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security, and airports,” he stated.

 

IndiGo has nine members on its board. The airline is chaired by Vikram Singh Mehta, a former IAS officer and former head of Shell India who now leads a policy think-tank. Promoter-director Rahul Bhatia serves as managing director. The board also includes senior lawyer Pallavi Shardul Shroff and former Chief of the Indian Air Force B S Dhanoa as independent directors. Michael Gordon Whitaker, former head of the US Federal Aviation Administration, is also an independent director.

 

M Damodaran, former Sebi chairman, is a non-executive director, alongside finance veteran Anil Parashar and former WestJet CEO Gregg Albert Saretsky. The board also has Amitabh Kant, former senior government policymaker, as a non-executive director.