Opinion IndiGo crisis shows how little power passengers have
For air travellers in India, there are minimal passenger rights, near-zero accountability and few avenues for recourse. In the current instance, the only law in India is the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, which only deals with deficiencies in services in general
The collapse in capacity sent fares soaring on many routes but with more flights resuming, ticket prices are expected to ease. By Satyendra Pandey
India’s largest airline, IndiGo, has experienced its most severe operational disruption in years. As of December 5, more than 1,000 flights have been cancelled over multiple days, with December 4 alone seeing over 550 cancellations, primarily in metro cities. Thousands of passengers have been stranded, holidays ruined, and baggage lost. Understandably, tempers are flaring. The outrage is justified. However, given the airline’s market position — it accounts for more than 60 per cent of domestic traffic — this situation calls for collaborative solutions. Three key issues emerge: Regulatory changes, pilot hiring and weak consumer protection laws.
At the core of the crisis is a mismatch between pilot staffing and the new Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) regulations that came into full effect on November 1. The revised rules, designed to enhance safety by combating pilot fatigue, mandate 48 consecutive hours of weekly rest and tighter duty hours, and limit night landings to two per duty period. While universally welcomed for their intent, the implementation timeline has airlines short of the required pilot numbers. Each shortfall does not merely ground one flight. It triggers a chain reaction across the five to six sectors an aircraft typically flies daily, amplifying disruptions across the interconnected network. Compounding factors include the ongoing winter schedule, adverse weather, airport capacity, and the time required to onboard new pilots.
On the recruiting front, hiring, training, and integrating new pilots is a challenge, especially when global demand remains strong. There is opposition within pilot ranks to hiring expatriates, exacerbated due to the differential salaries and benefits. So, airlines have to walk a tightrope.
Finally, what has been lost in most commentary is the consumer. For air travellers in India, there are minimal passenger rights, near-zero accountability and few avenues for recourse. In the current instance, for aggrieved passengers, the only law prevailing in India is the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, which only deals with deficiencies in services in general. It does not have any dedicated provisions on the protection of air passengers. In February 2019, the Ministry of Civil Aviation published a Passenger Charter dealing with air passengers’ rights. Its implementation has been found wanting. This incident will perhaps fuel the demand for a dedicated air passenger protection law.
On December 5, IndiGo took the unprecedented step of suspending all domestic departures from Delhi, its largest hub. This is effectively an operational reset. More targeted cancellations are expected over the next few days to restore stability. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has responded by granting limited, temporary relaxations on the regulations and has engaged directly with the airline’s leadership to monitor recovery.
The episode underscores the value of a closer government-industry-public partnership. As India’s aviation market expands rapidly, events like this simply cannot stand. Data sharing, transparency, and accountability are the only mitigating measures to avert another meltdown.
The writer is managing partner at AT-TV, an aviation finance firm
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