The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has held IndiGo’s top management accountable for ongoing flight disruptions, issuing a show-cause notice to its CEO Pieter Elbers, as the low-cost airlines cancelled more flights on Sunday amid an ongoing crisis.
The aviation regulator has sought explanation from him within 24 hours on why enforcement action should not be initiated against him after widespread IndiGo delays and cancellations disrupted air travel across the country.
The rules the airline failed to comply with are 42A of the Aircraft Rules, 1937, and Civil Aviation Requirements which pertain to fatigue management of pilots.
According to the DGCA notice, “Whereas such large-scale operational failures indicate significant lapses in planning, oversight, and resource management, and prima facie non-compliance on the part of the airline”.“Whereas as the CEO you are responsible for ensuring effective management of the airlines, but you have failed in your duty to ensure timely arrangements for the conduct of reliable operations and the availability of requisite facilities to the passenger,” said the notice.
The DGCA noted “massive disruptions” in IndiGo’s schedule, causing “severe inconvenience, hardship and distress” to travellers. It also highlighted that the large-scale operational collapse points to “significant lapses in planning, oversight and resource management”.
In a video message on Friday, Elbers said that given the size, scale, and complexity of their operations, it will take some time to return to a full normal situation, "which we do anticipate between the 10 to 15th of December".
In an interaction with IANS, Civil Aviation Minister Rammohan Naidu said that measures have been implemented to prevent further issues for passengers amid the ongoing crisis of cancellations and delays with IndiGo.
He also mentioned that any necessary strict action against the airline will be taken following an investigation.
“We are conducting a thorough investigation into Indigo. We will take whatever steps are necessary with utmost caution. The Ministry has also formed a four-member team for this,” said the minister.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation has imposed a country-wide cap on domestic airfares in order to contain the sharp and sudden surge in ticket prices following massive disruptions at IndiGo. The cap ranges from Rs 7,500 to Rs 18,000 depending on the length of the route.