India’s largest airline IndiGo is slowly bringing back normal flight operations after nearly a week of major disruptions that left thousands of passengers stranded across several airports. The situation, which started on December 3, led to widespread delays, last-minute cancellations, and large queues at airports in many cities.
Government officials said on Monday that most flights are now returning to schedule, and the airline has also started clearing the backlog of baggage that was left behind because of the sudden operational breakdown. According to official estimates, around 9,000 bags were left unattended, and nearly 6,000 bags reached passengers before Monday evening. The remaining baggage is expected to be returned by today.
Officials from the Ministry of Civil Aviation said that more than 1,800 IndiGo flights were operated on Monday, which is close to the airline’s regular schedule. However, nearly 500 domestic flights still could not operate, and passengers in several airports continued to face delays. 
Passengers at airports like Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Delhi said they had to wait for several hours with very little information from the airline. Some passengers also said that the customer helpline did not respond properly and they had to keep calling without getting clear answers. At Ahmedabad airport, a passenger said his flight was rescheduled by almost 12 hours, and he received very little help from the support staff.
Officials at Thiruvananthapuram airport said that one domestic arrival and three domestic departures were cancelled on Monday. Many other airports, including Mumbai, Guwahati, Chennai and Jaipur, also reported disruptions.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) confirmed that a show-cause notice was issued to IndiGo and that the regulator has now received the airline’s reply. DGCA said that enforcement action will be taken after examining the response, and added that the airline has apologised for the inconvenience caused to passengers.
Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu said that the government will not compromise on safety and that the disruption appears to be an internal matter related to crew and pilot management. He said that a four-member committee has been formed under the DGCA, and a detailed report is expected in the next 15 days.
The Minister also said that the Prime Minister asked officials to ensure that the needs of passengers are given top priority.
Government officials said that refunds amounting to more than ₹745 crore have already been issued to over 7 lakh passengers since December 2. Passengers who book flights again with IndiGo before December 15 will not have to pay re-booking charges, officials added. The Ministry also said that most of the baggage left behind has been tracked and is now being sent directly to passengers’ addresses.
On Monday, shares of InterGlobe Aviation, the parent company of IndiGo, fell by nearly 9 percent after the government signaled that action will be taken against the airline. This decline has continued for seven days, and reports suggest that the company has lost around $4.5 billion in market value during this period.
Some pilot associations and aviation experts claimed that the airline expanded its network without preparing enough crew, especially after new fatigue-related rules came into effect. The Airline Pilots’ Association said that safety should not be compromised and that temporary exemptions from duty rules could put both passengers and crew at risk.
The CPI(M) also demanded an inquiry into what it called long-standing structural problems in India’s aviation sector. The party said that a near-monopoly by a few major airlines was one of the reasons behind the crisis, and called for better regulation.
Government statements indicated that the inquiry will try to understand why the airline continued regular operations despite internal challenges related to crew and pilot availability. Officials have questioned why the company did not alert authorities in advance. They also asked why passengers were not informed early about the expected disruptions.
The Delhi High Court has agreed to hear a petition related to the flight disruptions on December 10, while the Supreme Court observed that the matter is serious but said that the Centre is already handling the situation and therefore it would not intervene at this stage.
The Ministry of Civil Aviation said that most airlines are now flying at full capacity and that IndiGo’s operations should return completely to normal by December 10. Officials also said that strict corrective measures will be taken to make sure such incidents do not happen again.
Although the situation is improving, several passengers are still waiting for their baggage and refunds. Many passengers also said that clear communication from the airline was missing during the crisis.
