The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), India’s aviation safety regulator, has directed IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers to attend a meeting at its office on Thursday, December 7, to provide a detailed report on the recent operational disruptions that have affected the airline.
read also: IndiGo Begins Regaining Operational Stability After Days of Severe Flight Disruptions
The DGCA has asked Elbers to submit comprehensive data on the disruptions, including flight restoration efforts, recruitment plans for pilots and crew, updates on the airline’s staffing, and details regarding flight cancellations and refunds.
Elbers has been instructed to attend the meeting at 3 pm, along with senior officials from all relevant departments of IndiGo.
In addition to the report, the DGCA has outlined a series of specific areas for examination. The airline has been asked to provide information on its pilot and crew recruitment plan, the updated number of flight cancellations, and the status of refunds processed. The meeting will also cover the airline’s strategies to address the underlying issues causing these disruptions, including an assessment of its manpower planning and fluctuating crew rostering systems.
The crisis, which led to thousands of cancelled and delayed flights, prompted the DGCA to form a four-member committee to investigate the root causes of the operational breakdown. The panel includes Joint DG Sanjay Brahamane, Deputy Director General Amit Gupta, Senior Flight Operations Inspector Kapil Manglik, and FOI Lokesh Rampal. The committee has been tasked with closely analyzing IndiGo’s crew management, its readiness to implement revised flight duty time regulations, and any gaps in compliance with duty period and rest norms for pilots.
The investigation was officially announced on December 5 by DGCA chief Faiz Ahmed Kidwai. The committee is expected to focus on holding IndiGo accountable for the planning failures that contributed to the widespread flight disruptions.
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