IndiGo Responds to DGCA Notice, Faces Likely Penalties as Regulator Finds Answers Unsatisfactory

IndiGo finally replied to the show-cause notice issued by aviation regulator DGCA on Monday evening, after it cancelled thousands of flights across the country and inconvenienced millions of its passengers. The response is jointly signed by the company's CEO and COO, and has been submitted at 6:01 pm.

It expresses "deep regret" and "heartfelt apologies" to passengers, but the biggest question remains: how this massive crisis arose. IndiGo has written that the problem was caused by an "unfortunate and unexpected combination of several factors," which "are not yet possible to pinpoint."

The DGCA is studying the response, but indications are that IndiGo's response has not been deemed satisfactory. Strict action will likely be taken against the company, as warned by Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu in the Rajya Sabha on Monday.

The company has requested more time from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, as they believe the show-cause notice rule allows 15 days. In other words, only preliminary information has been provided; a full root cause analysis will follow.

The response cited "initial contributing factors" as minor technical glitches, winter flight schedule changes, bad weather, increased airport congestion, and the implementation of new Flight Duty Time Limitation (FDTL) Phase 2 regulations.

The company's response was provided by the DGCA itself. The company claims that it had already been seeking a waiver or suspension of FDTL regulations from the DGCA, but when these factors converged in early December, crew availability suddenly decreased, increasing pressure on the network.

On December 5th, IndiGo conducted a "network reboot," deliberately canceling a large number of flights to evacuate stranded passengers and relocate crew and aircraft. The company states that due to these measures, services gradually returned to normal from December 6th. Passengers were provided with hotel, food, transportation, and refunds "to the best of their ability."

But all that does not tally with the ground reality, as most passengers were not given any. IndiGo has yet to explain what serious planning and management lapses occurred. Nor has it responded to two briefings submitted by the Civil Aviation Minister in the Rajya Sabha on Monday.

However, the DGCA has stated that it is studying the response and will take appropriate action soon. Sources indicate that the regulatory agency is not satisfied with IndiGo's "asking for time" and is preparing to impose severe penalties.