IndiGo has restored its flight network to around 2,200 daily services on Thursday, Chief Executive Officer Pieter Elbers said, adding that “the worst is behind us”.
In a message to employees, Elbers said the carrier is now focused on three priorities: strengthening resilience, conducting a root-cause analysis of the breakdown, and rebuilding systems to prevent a recurrence. He said, “Through the storm, we found our wings again.”
The statement comes on a day when a parliamentary panel sharply criticised the airline over widespread operational disruptions that pushed Indian aviation close to a standstill in early December.
From Crisis Stabilisation to Network Restoration
Elbers thanked pilots, cabin crew, airport staff, operations control and customer service teams for standing united during the disruptions.
Referring to measures taken since December 9, he said the airline had moved swiftly to stabilise operations and rebuild capacity. “We restored our network to 2200 flights today. Given our scale and complexity, recovering from such a situation in a short time is a testament to our teamwork and the strength of our operating principles,” he said.
Elbers said the airline’s focus would now shift to resilience, root-cause analysis and rebuilding. On resilience, he pointed to the onset of the IROP season, saying the priority would be to keep operations stable while minimising the impact of external disruptions on customers.
Cautioning against speculation, the CEO said a detailed review was already under way.
“What we witnessed seems to be a compounding effect of several factors. Everyone wants answers. Speculations are circulating, but I encourage everyone, please stay calm, focus on your professional responsibilities and avoid engaging in such speculations,” he said.
Root Cause Analysis
Elbers added that an external aviation expert appointed by the board would conduct a full-scale analysis of the episode. IndiGo last week appointed veteran Aviation Expert Captain John Illson -led Chief Aviation Advisors LLC to carry out the root cause analysis of the recent operational disruption which left many passengers stranded at many airports across the country this month.
To instill confidence in staff he said the leadership team would travel across the network to engage directly with employees and gather feedback from the ground.
Urging employees not to let the recent disruptions define the airline’s legacy, Elbers reflected on IndiGo’s growth since its launch.
“In 2006, 19 years ago, we started from one aircraft… Today, we are 65,000 proud IndiGo colleagues and in these 19 years, over 850 million customers choose to fly with us,” he said.
Shares of IndiGo parent InterGlobe Aviation rose over 3 per cent to ₹5,131 apiece at 1.15 pm on December 18. Since the beginning of the month, the stock had fallen more than 21 per cent, hitting a low of ₹4,645 per share on December 11. While the shares have since recovered, they remain below pre-crisis levels.