IndiGo flight disruptions: Government steps in with fare controls; CCPA takes cognisance amid flight chaos

The government on Saturday imposed fare caps across all routes affected by IndiGo’s massive operational breakdown, as the airline continued to cancel hundreds of flights nationwide for the fifth straight day. The move follows reports of sudden and steep airfare spikes, forcing the Ministry of Civil Aviation to invoke its regulatory powers and direct all airlines to strictly adhere to newly prescribed pricing limits. In an official statement, the government said the caps would remain in force until operations stabilise and warned that any deviation would attract immediate corrective action.

The government noted that the aim is to prevent opportunistic pricing and to protect passengers—especially senior citizens, students, and medical travellers—from financial strain during the disruption.

Government sources told Business Today that the Central Consumer Protection Authority has taken cognisance of the disruptions. The National Consumer Helpline has so far received more than 50 complaints relating to refunds, rebooking challenges, and delays in customer support.

According to the sources, the Department of Consumer Affairs has directed IndiGo to issue 100 per cent refunds for all cancelled flights and to allow passengers to reschedule without any conditions or additional charges. Because IndiGo is a convergence partner on the NCH platform, complaints are being escalated to the airline in real time to ensure faster resolution.

The crisis originated from a sudden shortage of cockpit crew following the rollout of the DGCA’s revised Flight Duty Time Limitation norms, which tightened rest requirements for pilots. IndiGo was unable to adjust its rosters quickly enough, resulting in cascading cancellations across its network. On Friday, the airline was forced to cancel all domestic departures from Delhi Airport, marking one of the most severe aviation disruptions in recent years.

More than 1,000 flights were cancelled that day alone, followed by about 550 cancellations on Thursday. Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu attributed the chaos to shortcomings in IndiGo’s crew-management planning and its handling of the transition to the new duty-time rules. To facilitate recovery, the DGCA has provided temporary exemptions to certain rest-duty provisions.

Passengers across major airports including Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad continued to face long queues and limited alternatives on Saturday, though Delhi Airport said operations were slowly returning to normal. Officials indicated that while the situation is expected to improve gradually, full recovery could take time given the scale of cancellations and ongoing crew shortages.