Several IndiGo Flights Delayed Due To 'Shortage Of Crew Members', DGCA Seeks Explanation

According to reports, where the budget carrier operates around 1600 flights on a daily basis, as many as 900 flights were delayed during the day.

New Delhi: Indian aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) took cognizance against several IndiGo flight delays across the country and sought explanation from the authorities of the low-cost airline on Sunday, news agency ANI reported. As per reports, several IndiGo flights across the country were flying behind schedule due to shortage of crew members. “Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has taken strong cognizance against IndiGo and sought a clarification/ explanation behind the massive flight delays nationwide,” ANI quoted the DGCA officials as saying.

The statement comes a day after hundreds of IndiGo flights got delayed resulting in flight disruptions due to non-availability of crew members on Saturday.

According to reports, where the budget carrier operates around 1600 flights on a daily basis, as many as 900 flights were delayed during the day.

A report by Times Of India, citing aviation ministry data, said only 45 per cent of the IndiGo flights could operate on time during the day on Saturday.

Meanwhile, IndiGo replied to several passengers on Twitter over flight delays. In one of the tweets, IndiGo wrote, "We never wish to disrupt our passenger's travel plans. The delay was due to the late arrival of the incoming aircraft which disrupted the rotation of the aircraft. We hope you will understand that many factors are beyond our control that determins our flight schedule."

Notably, there has been an increase in the demand over airline tickets as Covid-19 cases saw a slight dip across the country.

IndiGo on July 1 has started additional flight operations on the Delhi-Leh, Delhi-Srinagar and Lucknow-Pantnagar routes, to cater to the increased demand of travel to Ladakh, Kashmir and Uttarakhand.

“We are pleased to strengthen our network by adding frequencies on Delhi-Leh, Delhi-Srinagar and Lucknow-Pantnagar routes, catering to increased demand for travel to Ladakh, Uttarakhand and Kashmir,” a report by News18 quoted Sanjay Kumar, chief strategy and revenue officer of IndiGo as saying.