The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the country's aviation watchdog, asked IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers to appear before it again on Friday, as the airline's flight cancellations continued for the tenth consecutive day on Thursday. A four-member team would question Elbers, as per reports.
The DGCA had formed the four-member panel last week, comprising Joint DG Sanjay Brahamane, Deputy Director General Amit Gupta, senior Flight Operations Inspector Kapil Manglik, and FOI Lokesh Rampal, with a mandate to identify the root causes of widespread operational disruptions at the Rahul Bhatia-controlled domestic carrier.
Elbers was already summoned by the DGCA on Thursday. He will appear before the officials again on Friday. IndiGo, in a regulatory filing, stated that Elbers has been asked to appear before the Committee of Officers at the DGCA on 12 December. The panel was set up to examine the matter related to flight disruptions.
What will the DGCA panel probe?
The panel's mandate includes assessing manpower planning, fluctuating rostering systems, and the airline's preparedness to implement the latest duty period and rest norms for pilots, which came into effect on 1 November 2025.
Earlier in the day, sources said that DGCA officials have begun monitoring IndiGo's operations, refunds, and other processes from the airline's headquarters.
IndiGo under lens: Daily reports to be submitted, refund status monitored
– Sources aware of the matter said that officials are expected to submit daily reports on the situation at the airline, which is battling major operational disruptions and the cancellation of thousands of flights after planning lapses tied to the rollout of new pilot and crew duty norms, according to a report by PTI.
– On Wednesday, the DGCA decided to deploy two members – a senior statistics officer and a deputy director - at IndiGo's corporate office to monitor the status of domestic and international cancellations, refund status, on-time performance, compensation to the passengers as per the civil aviation requirements and baggage return, as per an order.
– The DGCA has also said that senior officials from the aviation watchdog will carry out immediate on-site inspections to assess IndiGo's operations across 11 domestic airports.
– All assigned officers will visit their respective airports in the next 2-3 days and submit a comprehensive report to the Director of Operations for the flight safety department at the DGCA in New Delhi within 24 hours of their visit.
IndiGo crisis
Crisis-hit IndiGo has cancelled thousands of flights nationwide since last week, after failing to plan for tighter safety regulations – with the disruptions peaking on 3-5 December – stranding thousands of flyers. From Tuesday, 9 December, the airline witnessed a partial recovery with operations slowly crawling back to normalcy.
Disruptions, however, continued with the airline cancelling a record 1,600 flights in a day on 5 December. The cancellations continued for the tenth consecutive day on Thursday, with 60 disruptions reported from Bengaluru airport alone.
