DGCA Grants IndiGo 24‑Hour Breathing Space, Gives Final Deadline To Reply To Show‑Cause Notice

New Delhi: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) announced on Sunday that it had given IndiGo a single 24‑hour extension to answer a show‑cause notice that was handed to the carrier’s chief executive on Saturday. The new deadline is 6 pm on December  8, and the regulator made it clear that this would be the last chance for the airline to submit its response . 

The DGCA officials stressed that failure to file a full and satisfactory answer by the new deadline would force the watchdog to proceed ‘ex‑parte’, which means it would make a decision based on the information already on hand. The statement also reminded IndiGo that no further extensions would be entertained . A special committee set up by the DGCA will review IndiGo’s response once it is received. 

The regulator has also signalled that it will monitor the airline’s compliance minutely, with the possibility of further enforcement action if needed. In the meantime, the government has urged the carrier to restore normal operations as quickly as possible and to keep passengers informed.

Civil Aviation Ministry Monitors The Situation

The Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) said it has acted quickly to ease the crisis, noting that the domestic aviation network is already showing steady improvement and that all other Indian carriers are operating at full capacity. According to MoCA, IndiGo’s schedules are visibly steadier, the airline has refunded about Rs 610 crore for cancelled or delayed flights and has returned roughly 3000 pieces of luggage as of Saturday. The officials stated that corrective measures will stay in place until operations are fully stabilised .

In its request, IndiGo’s top management explained that the large size of its nationwide network, combined with a series of unavoidable operational hiccups, had left the team stretched thin while preparing a comprehensive reply. The airline said these factors had made it difficult to gather all the necessary information in the original short timeframe . IndiGo also added that it will keep waiving cancellation and rescheduling fees for tickets booked up to December 15, while it works to restore normal operations. The carrier added that refund processing and baggage tracing are moving quickly, with teams operating around the clock to bring things back to normal .

Crisis Cause Analysis And Effect

The notice follows weeks of a wave of delays and cancellations that left thousands of travellers stranded at airports across the country. Several passengers have been waiting for hours, missing connecting flights and, in some cases, losing luggage. The airline has apologised and is working with the ministry to arrange refunds and re‑bookings, but the uncertainty has been a heavy burden for holidaymakers and business travellers.

A senior IndiGo official revealed that the airline is launching a detailed root‑cause analysis of the recent disruptions. He clarified that a shortage of pilots is not the main problem, although the carrier does not keep a large crew buffer, and he dismissed talk of a hiring freeze, confirming that recruitment continues. CEO Pieter Elbers told staff that the airline aims to run about 1650 flights on Sunday, with on‑time performance expected to reach 75 per cent. In an internal note, he said the recovery is happening “step by step” and that recent system upgrades have already boosted operational capacity.