Hundreds of flights have been cancelled and delayed, leaving passengers stranded at airports as the flight disruptions continued for the fourth day on Friday.
A Bengaluru-bound IndiGo Airlines flight with 216 passengers made an emergency landing in Varanasi after a bird strike. All passengers were safely evacuated.
Heavy rainfall in Delhi led to widespread waterlogging and severe traffic congestion, bringing the national capital to a standstill, with the India Meteorological Department issuing a red alert for further heavy rain.
Airports across the country have been placed on operational alert to manage potential flight diversions, unscheduled landings and passenger facilitation requirements.
'The CCI will first need to take a prima facie view on whether IndiGo's role warrants a detailed investigation.'
Aviation watchdog DGCA stations personnel at IndiGo's headquarters to monitor flight cancellations, crew deployment, and operational disruptions after thousands of flights were cancelled, causing passenger inconvenience.
Wingtips of Air India and IndiGo planes came in touch with each other at the Mumbai airport on Tuesday evening, and both aircraft have been grounded for checks, according to officials. Aviation regulator DGCA's team is at the site and will be probing the incident.
The Gurugram-based carrier, which commands over 65 per cent of India's total domestic traffic, had cancelled over 560 flights from six metro airports alone on Monday.
Pilots' body the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has alleged that IndiGo, despite getting a two-year preparatory window before the full implementation of new flight duty and rest period norms for cockpit crew, "inexplicably" adopted a "hiring freeze."
The DGCA has formed two specialised teams to internally monitor IndiGo's daily operations.
Indian airlines are expected to cancel 444 international flights due to airspace restrictions in the Middle East following attacks on Iran by Israel and the US. The civil aviation ministry is closely monitoring the situation and coordinating with airlines to ensure passenger safety and minimize disruptions.
According to sources, the crisis-ridden airline cancelled 137 flights at Delhi airport and 21 services at Mumbai airport.
India's largest airline IndiGo on Thursday reported a 78 per cent decline in December quarter net profit at Rs 549.1 crore as flight disruptions and implementation of the new labour code took a toll on its earnings. The airline reported a net profit of Rs 549.1 crore in the October-December quarter, compared with Rs 2,448.8 crore earnings in the year-ago period, according to a company statement.
IndiGo is operating 1,650 flights of its 2,300 daily domestic and international flights on Sunday, and 650 remain cancelled for the day, amid the airline's operations gradually stabilising after massive disruptions in the last five days, the airline said.
'I don't think it is right to remove him over one lapse. The focus should be on restoring operations, not on removing a key management personnel.'
The board of InterGlobe Aviation, the parent of IndiGo, has already set up a crisis management group in the wake of the significant operational disruptions that started on December 2.
Aviation safety regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Monday said it has received IndiGo's response to the show cause notice issued over the large-scale flight cancellations and will take enforcement action.
Domestic carrier IndiGo has cancelled over 180 flights from three major airports on Thursday, as the Gurugram-based airline struggles to secure the required crew to operate its flights in the wake of new flight-duty and rest-period norms for pilots.
Indigo airlines cancelled 13 flights from Hyderabad airport, causing chaos and frustration among passengers. The cancellations were attributed to technology and operational issues.
IndiGo's CEO, Pieter Elbers, announced that the airline has stabilized operations after recent disruptions, focusing on resilience, root-cause analysis, and rebuilding. The airline had to cancel hundreds of flights due to planning issues linked to new pilot duty rules, crew shortages, winter weather and operational bottlenecks.
Fair trade watchdog Competition Commission of India (CCI) is examining whether the country's largest airline, IndiGo, violated competition norms, a senior official said on Friday amid the carrier facing regulatory scrutiny over significant flight disruptions.
Where was the Board when a predictable regulatory change brought the country's largest airline to its knees? asks Dr Sudhir Bisht.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation-appointed panel investigating the flight disruptions at IndiGo is likely to summon the airline's CEO Pieter Elbers and Chief Operating Officer Isidre Porqueras on Wednesday as part of the ongoing probe, according to a source on Monday.
Pilots' body Airlines' Pilots Association (ALPA) India on Friday took 'strong' objection to safety regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA)'s 'selective and unsafe' relief to domestic carrier IndiGo, amid widescale cancellations, saying the decision sets a dangerous precedent.
The country's largest airline IndiGo, which faced massive operational disruptions earlier this month, saw its domestic market share slide to 63.6 per cent in November, according to official data. Air India Group, comprising Air India and Air India Express, and SpiceJet had their respective market shares in November rise to 26.7 per cent and 3.7 per cent, respectively.
Blaming Indigo entirely for the crisis, Naidu said that even on December 1, 2025, when the Ministry met with Indigo on FDTL, as it required some clarification, the company didn't flag the issue that caused the crisis.
A bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela also asked how could other airlines take advantage of the crisis situation and charge hefty sums for tickets from the passengers.
'They are saying that there is a pilot shortage which is not correct, but if it was true, did they suddenly come to know this on December 5?' 'If they didn't have crew, why did they seek approval for a winter schedule? To get the approval, the operator has to show crew strength and also a buffer of crew available.' 'If they had a crew crunch, why did they ask for extra flights? Or was it something else that made them so sure that they would get away with this exemption and bans?'
Three Air India narrowbody aircraft at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport were damaged when ground support equipment, moved by sudden strong winds and rain, collided with them. All three planes were taken out of operation, with two expected to return soon.
'IndiGo will receive a sharp rap on the knuckles -- a punishment, a huge penalty. 'I look towards them creating a compensation fund.' 'I would like to think they would do that for all the passengers who are affected on every single day since cancellations began.'
The airline announced that it will fully refund all bookings cancelled between December 5 and December 15 and will offer a waiver on all cancellation and rescheduling requests.
In another development, aviation safety regulator DGCA in an order on Sunday late evening extended the time by Monday 6 pm for IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers and Chief Operating Officer and Accountable Manager Isidro Porqueras to submit reply to its show cause notice over the ongoing disruptions in the airline's operations.
Passengers complained of last-minute alerts, lack of communication and long queues as flight operations continued to be hit nationwide.
Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said the government has initiated an inquiry into Indigo's mass flight cancellations and will take strict action against the operator to set an example for other airlines.
Union Minister assures accountability after IndiGo flight cancellations cause widespread passenger distress and mental harassment. The DGCA has launched an inquiry and issued a notice to IndiGo.
'Where rostering systems are automated and duty time software interfaces directly with DGCA, the assertion that they suddenly discovered crew shortages is simply implausible.' 'If adequate crew planning hasn't materialised within 12 to 24 months from inception, how will 45 days -- from December 5 to February 12 -- suddenly resolve matters?'
The Adani Group-owned Navi Mumbai International Airport is slated to commence international passenger and freighter operations from July 15. This marks a significant expansion for the airport, which began domestic services last December. Air India Express and IndiGo are expected to operate international flights, with customs readiness reviews already completed. The airport anticipates a substantial increase in daily passenger footfall and air traffic movements by the year-end.
Here are some glimpses of the unfolding scenes, as weary passengers clutch their luggage, waiting for clarity amid the turmoil.
IndiGo has processed refunds totalling Rs 610 crore and delivered 3,000 pieces of baggage to passengers after recent flight disruptions, according to the government.
With 7.64 million seats, the Mumbai-Delhi route in 2025 was the eighth busiest route in the world.
