IndiGo expects to maintain current level of operations post Feb 10 after FDTL relaxations lapse, say sources

The airline expects to maintain its current schedule for the entire duration of the Winter Schedule, which ends on March 28. According to sources close to IndiGo, pilot hiring and onboarding pipeline at the airline is robust, which they expect will lead to sufficient numbers of pilots being added by early to mid-February. Also, command upgrades—promotions of first officers to captains—in cases where they were already due are being accelerated, which is expected to help the airline cover the shortfall and even increase its pilot buffers, or bench strength to improve its roster resilience.

As the last resort, if these measures are unable to meet the February 10 exemption deadline prescribed by the regulator, IndiGo could look at network adjustments, particularly a rationalisation of its night flights to achieve resilience in its roster, said sources. The airline is unlikely to seek an extension of the exemptions.

The new Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules stipulate more rest for pilots and rationalization of their flying duties—particularly late night operations—in a bid to better manage pilot fatigue, which is a key risk to aviation safety. These new norms, which were stipulated in January 2024 were delayed in their implementation, and took effect in two phase—from July 1, 2025 and November 1, 2025—with the second phase rollout hitting IndiGo considerably. The new norms meant that airlines either had to have more pilots to maintain their schedule, or shrink the schedule in line with the new requirements. IndiGo, however, was caught unprepared.

IndiGo accounts for a lion’s share of domestic flights that land or depart between midnight and 6 am, the new definition of ‘night’ in the revised FDTL rules; the earlier definition was midnight to 5 am. In that one hour –5-6 am—also, IndiGo is the dominant carrier, shows an analysis of the airlines’ schedule. Among other changes, the new rules capped the number of landings for pilots operating flights encroaching upon any part of this six-hour period at two, down from six earlier. This meant that pilots operating any so-called red-eye flight landing or departing in the 12-6 am period could only operate one more flight—before or after the said flight—in their entire duty shift for that day. This hit IndiGo the hardest.

In view of the scale of disruption faced by IndiGo, the DGCA exempted it from the new definition of night as well as the two-landing per crew cap for operations encroaching night till February 10, bringing huge relief, although temporary, to the carrier. The disruption, which began on December 3, peaked on December 5 with over 1,600 of the airline’s 2,300-plus daily flights getting cancelled. But with the DGCA granting specific exemptions, the airline was able to swiftly stabilise operations over the course of the next few days. On January 9, IndiGo was ordered to curtail its approved domestic flight schedule by 10%. Given that IndiGo commands a domestic market share of around 65 per cent, the disruption had brought India’s civil aviation operations to their knees.

On Saturday, the DGCA imposed financial penalties totalling Rs 22.20 crore on the airline for the operational meltdown, apart from issuing warnings to its top management personnel. The fine is the highest-ever regulatory penalty imposed by the DGCA on an airline, and is slightly higher than IndiGo’s average daily net profit for financial year 2024-25.

The enforcement actions by the regulator are based on the findings of a four-member DGCA inquiry committee that was tasked with a comprehensive review and assessment of the circumstances that led to the crisis in the first week of December. The inquiry committee had concluded that the primary causes for the disruption were over-optimisation of operations, inadequate preparedness along with deficiencies in system software support for the revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) provisions, and shortcomings in IndiGo’s management structure and operational control.

“The Committee observed that the airline’s management failed to adequately identify planning deficiencies, maintain sufficient operational buffer, and effectively implement the revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) provisions. These lapses resulted in widespread flight delays and large-scale cancellations, causing inconvenience to passengers,” the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) said Saturday.

“The Inquiry further noted an overriding focus on maximising utilisation of crew, aircraft, and network resources, which significantly reduced roster buffer margins. Crew rosters were designed to maximise duty periods, with increased reliance on dead-heading, tail swaps, extended duty patterns, and minimal recovery margins. This approach compromised roster integrity and adversely impacted operational resilience. The inquiry also included within its purview long term reform measures addressing systemic issues so that such incidents do not occur in the future and passengers are not put to any inconvenience,” it added.