The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has slapped a hefty penalty of ₹22.20 crore on IndiGo, the country’s largest airline, following widespread flight cancellations and delays in early December 2025 that left over 3,00,000 passengers stranded across airports. The action comes after a detailed probe revealed systemic lapses in operational planning, crew management, and compliance with regulatory norms.
The disruptions, which occurred between December 3 and 5, 2025, resulted in the cancellation of 2,507 flights and delays to 1,852 others, said a press note issued by DGCA. A four-member committee appointed by the DGCA conducted an exhaustive review, including stakeholder statements, analysis of network planning, rostering practices, and software systems.
The investigation pinpointed over-optimisation of operations as a primary culprit, where the airline prioritised maximising crew, aircraft, and network utilisation at the expense of resilience.
Key findings from the probe included inadequate buffer margins in crew rosters, over-reliance on extended duty patterns, tail swaps, and dead-heading (transporting crew as passengers), which compromised operational stability.
The report stated, “the primary causes for the disruption were over-optimisation of operations, inadequate regulatory preparedness along with deficiencies in system software support and shortcomings in management structure and operational control on the part of M/s IndiGo.”
As per the report, the Committee observed that the airline’s management failed to adequately identify planning deficiencies, maintain sufficient operational buffer, and effectively implement the revised Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) provisions. These lapses resulted in widespread flight delays and large-scale cancellations, causing inconvenience to passengers.
As per the DGCA statement, the Inquiry further noted an overriding focus on maximising utilisation of crew, aircraft, and network resources, which significantly reduced roster buffer margins. “Crew rosters were designed to maximise duty periods, with increased reliance on dead-heading, tail swaps, extended duty patterns, and minimal recovery margins. This approach compromised roster integrity and adversely impacted operational resilience,” the statement said.
The inquiry also included within its purview long-term reform measures addressing systemic issues so that such incidents do not occur in the future and passengers are not put to any inconvenience. DGCA said that the findings underscore the need for balanced operational planning, robust regulatory preparedness, and effective management oversight to ensure sustainable operations and passenger safety and convenience.
The penalty includes ₹1.80 crore for one-time systemic violations of various Civil Aviation Requirements (CARs), such as failures in establishing compliant schemes for flight time limits, improper delegation of operational control, and lapses in accountable management duties.
Additionally, IndiGo faces ₹20.40 crore for continued non-compliance with FDTL norms over 68 days, from December 5, 2025, to February 10, 2026, calculated at ₹30 lakh per day.
In a stern measure, the DGCA has also required IndiGo to pledge a ₹50 crore bank guarantee to ensure adherence to long-term reforms, with phased releases tied to verified improvements in leadership, manpower planning, digital systems, and board oversight under the IndiGo Systemic Reform Assurance Scheme (ISRAS).
Beyond financial penalties, the DGCA issued personal enforcement actions against senior executives. IndiGo’s CEO received a caution for inadequate oversight and crisis management, while the Accountable Manager (COO) was warned for failing to assess the impacts of the 2025 winter schedule and revised FDTL rules.
The Senior Vice President of the Operations Control Centre (OCC) was directed to be relieved of duties and barred from accountable positions due to systemic planning failures.
Warnings were also extended to the Deputy Head of Flight Operations, AVP of Crew Resource Planning, and Director of Flight Operations for lapses in supervision and roster management.
The airline has been instructed to act against other personnel identified in its internal inquiry and submit a compliance report to the DGCA.
In response, IndiGo acknowledged the orders and stated that its board and management are committed to addressing the findings.
