The Competition Commission of India (CCI) on Thursday said that it has taken cognizance of Information filed against budget airline IndiGo following recent flight disruptions that hit air travel nationwide. The development came as the airline’s chief executive Pieter Elbers, in a video message to employees, said that the airline has stabilised operations, and that the country’s largest airline was now focused on resilience, a root-cause review and rebuilding.
“The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has taken cognizance of Information filed against IndiGo in the context of the recent flight disruptions witnessed in the aviation sector, across various routes. Based on the initial assessment, the Commission has decided to proceed further in the matter in accordance with the provisions of the Competition Act, 2002,” the CCI, which is India’s competition regulator said in a statement.
IndiGo flight disruptions
Earlier this month, IndiGo cancelled about 4,500 flights due to poor pilot roster planning, stranding tens of thousands of passengers in one of the country’s biggest aviation disruptions. The incident dented the reputation of the airline, which controls more than 60% of the domestic market.
IndiGo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The CCI typically has powers to order its investigation arm to probe such matters.
The disruptions underscored the risks of a near-duopoly in the world’s fastest-growing aviation market, where IndiGo and Air India together hold a more than 90% share. Fares surged during the cancellations, prompting the government to impose temporary caps.
Worst behind us, IndiGo CEO tells staff
IndiGo’s chief executive Pieter Elbers told employees that the worst was over for the country’s largest airline.
IndiGo has restored most of its flight network following the disruptions, he said.
In early December, the airline cancelled hundreds of flights – at times more than 1,600 in a single day – due to planning issues linked to new pilot duty rules, crew shortages, winter weather and operational bottlenecks. The cancellations impacted tens of thousands of travellers and triggered regulatory scrutiny, schedule cuts and a temporary suspension of certain pilot duty norms to stabilise operations.
Since then, IndiGo has gradually restored services, operating 2,200 flights on Thursday and working to normalise its network while reviewing causes and compensating affected customers.
“Through the storm, we are finding our wings again. The worst is behind us,” Elbers said, according to news agency PTI.
He said the past two weeks had been “very challenging” but credited pilots, cabin crew, airport teams, operations control and customer service staff for restoring the network to around 2,200 flights a day.
IndiGo has appointed an external aviation expert to conduct a comprehensive root-cause analysis into the disruption, he said, urging employees to avoid speculation while the review is underway.
The CEO said similar disruptions had affected large airlines globally and that lessons would be used to strengthen IndiGo’s systems.
With the onset of the bad weather and peak aviation season, the airline’s immediate priority is to reinforce operational resilience and minimise the impact of external factors on customers, he said.
“Bad weather and peak season started this week and all the focus is to solidify the operations and doing our level best to keep the operations stable and minimize impact of those external factors on operations and customers,” he said, PTI reported.
Stating that everyone wants to know the reasons for disruptions, he said an external aviation expert has been appointed by the board to conduct a comprehensive root cause analysis.
As part of the rebuilding effort, the leadership team will travel across the network to meet employees and gather feedback on challenges faced during the disruption
