INDIA's aviation ministry on Friday withdrew a new weekly rest policy for pilots after hundreds of IndiGo flight cancellations caused widespread disruption.
Airports across the country have faced operational issues since Monday, with IndiGo attributing the disruption to “unforeseen operational challenges”.
On Thursday, the airline told aviation regulators that “misjudgement and planning gaps” in adjusting to the new rules had led to the breakdown, despite having two years to prepare.
The rules, introduced last month, were intended to increase pilot rest periods to improve passenger safety.
India's civil aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu said the “Flight Duty Time Limitations” rules “have been placed in abeyance with immediate effect”.
“Without compromising on air safety, this decision has been taken solely in the interest of passengers, especially senior citizens, students, patients, and others who rely on timely air travel for essential needs,” Naidu said in a statement.
He said the ministry expected that “flight schedules will begin to stabilise and return to normal by tomorrow.”
IndiGo, which cancelled all domestic flights on Friday from New Delhi and Chennai, apologised for “the immense inconvenience and distress” to travellers.
The airline holds 60 per cent of India’s domestic market and operates more than 2,000 flights daily.
Earlier on Friday, passengers expressed their frustration online, including Singapore’s ambassador to India, Simon Wong, who wrote that he was “lost for words”.
“I joined the tens of thousands of passengers stranded by #Indigo... My sincere apologies to my young staff waiting for me to attend his #shaadi (wedding). Lost for words,” a post on the embassy’s official X handle said.
A passenger at Delhi airport told NDTV he had not received any update from the airline for the last 12 hours.
Rahul Gandhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s main opponent from the Congress party, said the situation was a result of the government’s “monopoly model”.
“Once again, it's ordinary Indians who pay the price - in delays, cancellations and helplessness. India deserves fair competition in every sector, not match-fixing monopolies,” he said in a post on X.
The disruption is among the biggest challenges faced by the low-cost airline, known for its punctuality.
Last week, 200 IndiGo aircraft were affected after Airbus issued an alert for an urgent upgrade for 6,000 planes globally.
India, one of the world’s fastest growing aviation markets, reached 500,000 daily flyers last month for the first time.
(With inputs from agencies)
