Why IndiGo Flights Across India Are in Chaos
IndiGo faced a major nationwide crisis with more than 550 flight cancellations due to new pilot-duty rules and scheduling failures
IndiGo, one of India’s biggest airlines, has faced a major crisis in the past three days, causing massive disruption across airports in the country. More than 550 flights were cancelled, leaving thousands of passengers stuck for hours with long delays and very little information. The situation became worse as confusion grew at major airports.
The main reason behind the chaos was the new Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) rules introduced by DGCA on 1 November 2025. These rules were created to reduce pilot fatigue and improve safety. They include more weekly rest for pilots, fewer consecutive working days, stricter limits on night flights, and reducing night landings from six to two. Pilots can now fly a maximum of 8 hours per day, 35 hours per week, 125 hours per month, and 1,000 hours per year. They must also get double the duration of rest compared to their flying hours, with a minimum rest of 10 hours every 24 hours.
These safety rules required airlines to hire and schedule more pilots. IndiGo did not plan well for this change, and because it operates many overnight flights, pilot and crew shortages increased quickly. In November 2025, IndiGo cancelled 1,232 flights, out of which 755 were due to crew shortages or duty-time limits.
Airports across Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad saw long queues, system crashes, grounded flights, missing pilots, and passengers waiting 5–7 hours. IndiGo later admitted planning gaps and requested temporary relief from some FDTL rules until 10 February 2026.
