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IndiGo cancels all departure flights from Delhi's IGI airport till midnight
The flight disruptions have largely been owed to new flight duty norms that took effect on November 1.
IndiGo on Friday cancelled all its departure flights from Delhi's IGI airport till midnight amid operational disruptions, airport officials told HT. Chaos continued to break out in the day as more than 1,000 IndiGo flights were cancelled since Tuesday and many others were delayed across several airports in India.
At the Chennai airport also, IndiGo cancelled all its departure flights till 6 pm. Visuals surfaced on social media showing queues outside IndiGo counters at several airports, as passengers complained of disruptions to their flights.
Follow live updates related to IndiGo flight disruptions here.
What's causing the disruptions?
The flight disruptions have mainly been linked to the new flight duty rules that came into force on November 1 and IndiGo’s difficulties in putting in place the second phase of the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms.
After a detailed review meeting with the Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), the aviation regulator said, “To reduce passenger inconvenience while maintaining safety margins, IndiGo has requested operational variations or exemptions from specific FDTL provisions for A320 operations up to February 10, 2026.”
“IndiGo has assured DGCA that corrective actions are underway and that normalised and stable operations will be fully restored by February 10, 2026,” it added.
The rules have hit IndiGo hardest as it runs a high-frequency, high-utilisation model with many early-morning and late-night flights.
What are the new FDTL norms?
Here’s a look at what the rules say:
- Weekly rest: Pilots must be given 48 consecutive hours’ rest every week to help them recover from fatigue.
- Restricted night landings: Pilots can only perform a maximum of 2 landings during night operations (between midnight and 6 am).
- Consecutive night duties: Airlines must not roster flight crew members for more than two consecutive nights with a duty period within the night operations.
IndiGo issues another apology
In a statement posted on X on Thursday, IndiGo wrote, “The last two days have seen widespread disruption across IndiGo’s network and operations. We extend a heartfelt apology to all our customers and industry stakeholders who have been impacted by these events.”
It added, “IndiGo teams are working diligently and making all efforts with the support of MOCA, DGCA, BCAS, AAI and airport operators to reduce the cascading impact of these delays and restore normalcy.”
