IndiGo crisis: Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu vows strict action if airline proved at fault

New Delhi: Civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu again warned of tough action against IndiGo, the country’s biggest airline, for cancelling thousands of flights and throwing India’s travel into disarray since December 2, after failing to hire enough pilots to conform to new rest rules. The punishment will set an example for the industry, he said.

If the airline is found to be delinquent, chief operating officer Isidre Porqueras, the airline’s accountable manager, could face imprisonment of up to three years or a monetary penalty of ₹1 crore, or both, under new aircraft rules approved by Parliament last year.

The Supreme Court called the cancellation of flights by IndiGo a “serious matter” but declined to hear the matter urgently, acknowledging that the government had taken “timely action” to stabilise the country’s air travel system.

The airline, which has more than 65% share of the domestic market, cancelled over 5,000 flights in the past week, affecting close to 600,000 passengers and choking airports. Delhi’s terminal 1 had been stuffed with the luggage of passengers who’d been unable to fly after check-in.

500 Flights Cancelled on Monday

The airline is said to be limping back to normalcy but still had to cancel over 500 flights on Monday as it tries to stabilise operations. That’s down from the worst day on December 5, when it cancelled more than 1,600 flights.

IndiGo’s scrip plunged more than 8% on Monday as ratings agency Moody’s warned that the company may face a big financial hit due to the crisis.

Naidu talked tough after lawmakers expressed their anger over the airline’s failings. “We are not taking the situation easily,” Naidu told the Rajya Sabha. “We are doing an inquiry, and we will take very, very strict action. We will set an example for all the airlines.”

The minister signalled that despite continuous checks, officials at the ministry and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had been blindsided. “This was an operational issue created by IndiGo. We were continuously in touch with them. On November 1, the ministry held a meeting, IndiGo sought some clarification, and it was given. They failed to maintain their roster,” Naidu said.

The new rules were implemented by the regulator in two phases in order to tackle pilot fatigue. The first of these began in June and the second from November 1. This also capped the number of landings a pilot can perform between midnight and 6 am.

The second phase had been actually delayed by the government by a year to help airlines plan crew requirements after they warned of widespread flight cancellations. Though IndiGo and other airlines lobbied intensely for further postponements, the regulator, under a Delhi High Court mandate, enforced them with limited relaxations.

While IndiGo required 2,422 captains, it only had 2,357, according to the carrier.

Some pilot groups questioned whether a claimed shortage of just 65 commanders could have unleashed chaos of this magnitude. Increasing the number of captains, senior pilots in the cockpit, is a complex task, as they undergo months of in-flight and on-ground training ahead of it.

Naidu also said the government was trying to increase the number of airlines in the country. With a 65% share of domestic passengers, IndiGo’s meltdown showed the risks of having a single dominant carrier. No other country has a dominant airline with such a high share of the market.

“I want more players in the industry,” Naidu said. “Today, India has a capacity of five big airlines and there has been an effort from the ministry to encourage more airlines.”

IndiGo’s dominance is unlikely to be challenged in the near future as rivals Air India and Akasa are struggling for planes due to a global supply chain crunch. There remains little appetite among Indian corporates to enter the airline business due to high entry barriers and the need for steep upfront investment.

Ameet Datta, founder and managing counsel at intellectual property and tech law firm ADP Law Offices, said the government needs to ease rules to permit the entry of foreign airlines in India.

The Substantial Ownership and Effective Control norms make it mandatory for a domestic carrier to be controlled and owned by an Indian or an Indian entity. This discourages foreign airlines from starting local operations.

In 2016, when Qatar Airways announced a plan to start an airline in India, IndiGo and SpiceJet successfully lobbied with the government to block the move.