IndiGo cancels over 650 flights on Sun; ops slowly stabilise

New Delhi/Mumbai, Dec 7 (PTI) The country's largest airline IndiGo on Sunday cancelled over 650 flights while the disrupted operations were slowly stabilising as the number of cancellations reduced and more than Rs 610 crore worth ticket refunds were processed for the affected passengers.

While IndiGo will carry out a "root cause analysis" into flight disruptions that continued for the sixth consecutive day, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol said passengers have endured mental harassment and distress due to the operational crisis and assured that steps are being taken to ensure accountability is fixed.

The board of IndiGo's parent InterGlobe Aviation has set up a Crisis Management Group (CMG), which is meeting regularly to monitor the situation, an announcement said on Sunday.

The airline expects operations to stabilise by December 10.

The civil aviation ministry, which has taken various measures, including capping airfares and directing IndiGo to expedite ticket refund process, on Sunday said air travel operations across the country are stabilising at a fast pace.

The civil aviation ministry, which has taken various measures, including capping airfares and directing IndiGo to expedite ticket refund process, on Sunday said air travel operations across the country are stabilising at a fast pace.

IndiGo's flight operations have increased from 706 on Friday to 1,565 on Saturday and are likely to reach up to 1,650 by the end of Sunday, the ministry said.

The ministry also said IndiGo has processed Rs 610 crore refunds and delivered 3,000 pieces of baggage to passengers across the country as of Saturday.

IndiGo said it will be operating 1,650 flights of its 2,300 daily domestic and international flights on Sunday, and 650 remain cancelled for the day.

At the Delhi airport, at least 118 flights were cancelled on Sunday, while the number was 121 at Mumbai airport, officials said.

In a video message to the staff, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers said, "step by step, we are getting back" and that the airline's on time performance (OTP) is expected to be 75 per cent.

The OTP, an indicator of punctuality, was 20.7 per cent on Saturday, as per the latest official data.

A senior airline official on Sunday told PTI that it will do a "root cause analysis" and asserted that the carrier has adequate number of pilots and there is no deficiency.

"Our pilot numbers are fine while we may not be having the luxury of a buffer," the official told PTI.

He also said there has been no hiring freeze amid concerns being raised in certain quarters that lean-operating model might have led to the current situation.

Lack of proper crew planning while implementing the new flight duty norms is being cited as a key reason for the significant operational disruptions.

According to the ministry, all other domestic airlines are operating smoothly and at full capacity, while IndiGo's performance has shown steady improvement on Sunday, with flight schedules moving back towards normal levels.

A statement issued by IndiGo said its Board of Directors is doing everything possible to take care of the challenges faced by its customers and ensure refunds to passengers.

IndiGo's parent InterGlobe Aviation is a listed company.

Meanwhile, a Parliamentary panel is also likely to summon top airline executives and aviation regulator DGCA officials over the significant disruptions.

Opposition party Congress also took a swipe at the government in relation to the flight disruptions.

Against the backdrop of the introduction of airfare caps, Congress leader P Chidambaram on Sunday said the Ministry of Civil Aviation has finally woken up and said such price containment should remain in force till a duopoly in the airline sector exists. PTI IAS RAM TRB