IndiGo flights update: Cancellations continue; passengers allegedly forced to buy tickets at high fares
Shortage of pilots continued to hamper operations of IndiGo with the budget carrier Tuesday cancelling as many as 30 flights from across major airports and passengers allegedly being forced to buy last minute tickets at high fares, a source said. Indigo airline said flight cancellations will continue for some more days, affecting around 30 flights per day. On Monday also, the airline had pulled out 32 flights from its network at short notice inconveniencing tens of hundreds of passengers.
Indigo flight cancellation
Acknowledging the disruption in its services, Indigo airlines said, it will "slightly adjust" its schedules in the coming days, impacting about 30 flights per day. Meanwhile, a senior official said aviation regulator DGCA is looking into the "issue." (Image: Official twitter page of Indigo)
Indigo Notam
Notam, or notice to airmen, is given to pilots and include information on potential hazards on a flight route. IndiGo has cancelled 30 flights Tuesday due to the on-going pilot shortages. Most flights have been cancelled from Kolkata, Hyderabad and Chennai, a source told PTI earlier in the day. (Image: Official twitter page of Indigo)
Indigo cancelled flights
While eight Indigo flights were not operated from Kolkata, another five flights were cancelled from Hyderabad and four each from Bangalore and Chennai among others, the source added. The source also alleged that IndiGo was forcing passengers to either buy last minute tickets on its flights or offering them alternate flights with one-stop connectivity with a long layover time. (Image: Official twitter page of Indigo)
Indigo flight duty and time limitation
Both the pilots and cabin crew of Indigo are governed by DGCA mandated flight duty and time limitation (FDTL) norms and they can't fly beyond the FDTL. The airline had Sunday blamed bad weather for disruptions in operations across its network.
Indigo passengers
"To avoid inconvenience, these adjustments are being made in advance, enabling adequate notice to passengers. They are being accommodated close to their original flight schedule. These adjustments amount to 1-2 percent of the originally planned flights," IndiGo said in the statement. (Image: Official twitter page of Indigo)