IndiGo's December chaos: 1,600 flights canceled, travel plans wrecked
December 2024 was rough for IndiGo flyers—India's biggest airline canceled over 1,600 flights in a single day because of pilot shortages and new government rules.
Over the course of a week, about 11 lakh passengers were left stranded at major airports like Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Chennai.
The trouble began in early December, after stricter rest requirements for pilots kicked in on November 1, 2024.
Why does this matter?
The meltdown hit hard on December 5: all Delhi departures were grounded till midnight and other cities faced similar messes.
IndiGo's on-time record, which was 84% in October, had already fallen to 68% in November, and during the meltdown dropped as low as 8.5%.
Even smaller airports like Chandigarh felt it—20,000 people had their plans upended in just one week.
How did things get back on track?
A few days later, aviation authorities stepped in with temporary rule relaxations and told IndiGo to cut its winter schedule by 10%.
By mid-December, things calmed down a bit—IndiGo was flying over 2,000 flights a day again with more stable timings.
But for anyone caught up in the chaos? It was a December to remember (or forget).