DGCA summons IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, top officials on Dec 11

A day after the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and minister Ram Mohan Naidu met IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers over the flight cancellation fiasco, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) summoned Elbers along with the carrier’s top officials on December 11, 3 pm.

The aviation watchdog has demanded a list of updates from the officials, including status on flight restoration, recruitment plans, updates on refunds process and baggage return, effective information dissemination and fare policy.

Some of the details DGCA sought from IndiGo are as follows:

• Status of ongoing flight restoration across the network
• Progress in re-accommodating affected passengers
• Updated position of pilot and cabin crew strength
• Recruitment and training pipeline for upcoming months
• Measures taken to prevent roster shortages and FDTL-related issues
• Number of flights cancelled and refunds processed
• Refund turnaround timelines for direct and OTA bookings
• Compliance with DGCA CAR provisions
• Summary of delayed or misrouted baggage cases
• Performance of SMS/email alert systems
• Steps to improve timely communication about delays and cancellations
• Policy and process for re-routing passengers on alternate flights

In the meeting with Naidu, Elbers confirmed that 100 per cent of refunds for flights affected till December 6th were completed and strict instructions to expedite the completion of the remaining refunds and baggage handover were given. He said IndiGo has been asked to comply with all the directives of the ministry including fare capping and passenger convenience measures.

The MoCA has asked for a 10 per cent cut – double of what the DGCA had ordered on Monday – in planned IndiGo flights to help restore order in the airline.