IndiGo, India’s largest airline, is facing a major operational meltdown, with over 1,000 flights cancelled in four days across the country.
The chaos stems primarily from the enforcement of new Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) rules, which require longer pilot rest periods and stricter night-flying limits.
While IndiGo has about 5,500 pilots on its roster currently, the new regulations — including limits on daily and weekly flying hours, mandatory rest periods and restrictions on night landings — significantly increases the demand for more pilots. Sources say the airline will need over 1,100 more, including over 200 first officers, to operate its dense, high-frequency network.
As a result, many flights could not be staffed, leading to widespread delays and cancellations, even though the overall pilot pool remains large. So what is the latesrt crisis?
Old rules vs new rules
The new FDTL rules introduced by India’s aviation regulator impose much stricter limits on pilot duty hours, night operations and required rest, compared to the previous system.
Under the old rules, IndiGo had greater flexibility — pilots could perform more night landings, work longer daily and weekly duty hours, and take shorter rest breaks, allowing the airline to run dense schedules with fewer crew.
Under the new rules, weekly rest has increased, night landings have been sharply reduced (from 6 to 2), and pilots are limited to lower flying hours — 8 hours per day, 35 per week, 125 per month, and 1,000 per year. Rest periods must now be at least twice the duty time, with a minimum of 10 hours in any 24-hour window. These tighter limits significantly reduce roster flexibility, requiring more pilots per aircraft and making IndiGo’s large night-time network especially vulnerable, leading to shortages and widespread delays.
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1. Weekly rest requirements
Old Rules: Lower mandatory weekly rest; airlines could schedule more consecutive duties.
New Rules: Higher weekly rest requirements; pilots get more mandatory rest, reducing available flying hours.
2. Night landing limits
Old Rules: Pilots could perform up to 6 night landings in a defined period.
New Rules: Limit reduced to 2 night landings, severely impacts airlines with many late-night flights (like IndiGo).
3. Duty hour limits (per day / week / month / year)
Daily duty
Old Rules: More flexible; pilots could operate longer duty periods in a 24-hour window.
New Rules: Max flight time: 8 hours per day
Stricter constraints on consecutive duty periods.
Weekly duty
Old Rules: Allowed higher weekly flight hours.
New Rules: Max 35 flight hours per week
Monthly duty
Old Rules: Higher permissible duty hours.
New Rules: Max 125 flight hours per month
Yearly duty
Old Rules: Allowed more annual flying time.
New Rules: Max 1,000 flight hours per year
Mandatory rest between duties
Old Rules: Rest periods were shorter and more flexible.
New rules: Rest must equal twice the length of the duty period
Minimum 10 hours rest in any 24-hour window.
Fatigue and safety considerations
Old Rules: Focused on maximising operational efficiency; fatigue guidelines were less strict.
New Rules: Stricter fatigue-risk management, prioritises rest, recovery and pilot alertness.
Roster flexibility
Old Rules: Airlines had greater freedom to stretch rosters, especially during peak seasons.
New Rules: Much tighter rostering – fewer consecutive flights, more rest blocks and reduced night operations.
Overall impact
Old Rules: Allowed IndiGo to run dense, high-frequency schedules with heavy night operations.
New Rules: Forced IndiGo to:
Use more pilots per aircraft
Reduce night-time operations
Rebuild rosters and rotations
Face immediate crew shortages
IndiGo flight disruptions: Below are the key points
Over 1,000 IndiGo flights have been cancelled in four days, causing nationwide chaos at major airports including Delhi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad.
IndiGo attributes the disruption to multiple operational issues, but the main trigger is the enforcement of new Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL), which impose stricter pilot rest requirements.
The new FDTL rules mandate 48 hours weekly rest, longer night duty windows, a limit of two night landings per week and a cap of eight night flying hours.
These rules pushed a large number of IndiGo pilots into mandatory rest just as the airline increased flight frequencies for the winter schedule.
A weekend A320 software advisory caused delays that extended past midnight, worsening the roster crunch and leading to cascading cancellations.
IndiGo’s massive scale — operating over 2,200 daily flights — amplified the crisis; even a small disruption resulted in hundreds of cancellations.
The DGCA has now withdrawn a strict FDTL clause that barred substituting weekly rest with leave, offering temporary relief for airlines trying to reassign crew.
Pilot unions blame IndiGo management for poor planning, citing a hiring freeze, lean staffing, pay freezes and schedules that did not account for new rest norms.
Unions also criticise DGCA for approving winter schedules without verifying pilot availability under the updated rules.
Passengers continue to face long delays, repeated rescheduling, and inadequate support, with many stranded at airports for 10–12 hours before their flights were cancelled.
The airlines dominant market share of almost 63 per cent has raised concerns about a monopoly.
The recent cancellation has stranded thousands of passengers, sparking outrage in Parliament too.
The Centre has directed airlines to implement measures to resolve the disruptions and ensure passenger refunds.
Also read: IndiGo flight chaos continues at Chandigarh Airport: Only 4 arrivals, 6 departures till 9 am
