The flight arrived safely at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport around 12:30 pm, and all passengers and crew were evacuated for a comprehensive search of the plane, stated Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 4) Atul Bansal.
IndiGo has been grappling with difficulties in securing the necessary crew to operate flights following the introduction of new flight-duty and rest-period regulations for pilots. “IndiGo canceled over 180 flights on Thursday across three airports—Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru,” a source informed PTI.
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The total cancellations at Mumbai airport reached 86 (41 arrivals and 45 departures) for the day, while Bengaluru saw 73 canceled flights, including 41 arrivals, according to the source.
Additionally, there were 33 flight cancellations at Delhi Airport for Thursday, the source added, indicating, “The overall number of cancellations is likely to increase by the end of the day.”
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The airline’s On-Time Performance (OTP) plummeted to 19.7% at six major airports including Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad on December 3, as it struggled to obtain the necessary crew for operations, down from nearly half on December 2, when it was 35 percent.
“IndiGo has been dealing with severe crew shortages since the second phase of the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) regulations was implemented, resulting in cancellations and significant delays in airport operations,” a source told PTI on December 4.
The DGCA has stated it is investigating the disruptions in IndiGo flights and has requested the airline to provide reasons for the current predicament, along with plans to mitigate flight cancellations and delays.
It is worth noting that the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) has claimed that IndiGo, despite having a two-year preparatory period before the full implementation of new flight duty and rest period regulations, “inexplicably” instituted a “hiring freeze.”
The FIP has urged the safety regulator, DGCA, to refrain from approving airlines’ seasonal flight schedules unless they possess adequate staff to operate their services “safely and reliably” in compliance with the New Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) regulations.
