IndiGo's 'Indi-Stop' crisis: Over 1L passengers, staff affected
In early December 2025, IndiGo hit a massive snag—over one lakh passengers and frontline staff were stranded after more than 2,000 flights were canceled over several days and thousands delayed.
On December 5 alone, the airline's on-time performance dropped to just 8.5%, with chaos at airports across the country.
Staff left in limbo for hours
IndiGo's ground staff, cabin crew, and pilots spent hours waiting without any updates from operations.
Many were stuck on planes for up to eight hours with no instructions, leaving them to handle frustrated travelers on their own.
What caused the meltdown?
The mess happened because of poor prep for new DGCA flight-duty rules, a shortage of around 60-70 pilots—even as IndiGo tried to expand—and some cost-cutting moves.
Regulators have since ordered a temporary capacity cut and paused some rules while they investigate.
DGCA steps in
The aviation regulator (DGCA) is now investigating what went wrong.
IndiGo has returned to running about 2,200 flights a day, but all eyes are on how they'll avoid another meltdown like this.