Pilot organization FIP on Monday strongly criticized the fine of Rs 22.20 crore imposed by aviation regulator DGCA on IndiGo Airlines for massive flight disruptions in December, terming it as very nominal. Indian Pilot Federation (FPI) said that the safety of passengers and aircraft cannot be compromised under any circumstances. At the same time, questions were also raised regarding DGCA’s investigation on the period of cancellation of flights.
DGCA had taken action in case of cancellation of flights
DGCA, after a detailed investigation on Saturday, had imposed a total fine of Rs 22.20 crore on IndiGo for canceling thousands of flights in early December. Along with this, the airline’s Chief Executive Officer Peter Albers and Chief Operating Officer Isidre Proquerras were warned, while Jason Hurter, Senior Vice President of the Operations Control Center (OCC), was also ordered to be removed from his current post.
What did DGCA find in its investigation?
DGCA found in its investigation that between December 3 and 5, a total of 2,507 IndiGo flights were canceled and 1,852 flights were delayed, affecting more than three lakh passengers at airports across the country. The regulator imposed a fine of Rs 20.40 crore on the airline for non-compliance of directions over a period of 68 days from December 5, 2025 to February 10, 2026, which works out to Rs 30 lakh per day.
FIP President called the action a joke
Describing this fine as very minor, FIP President G. S. Randhawa said that this action is like a joke. He said, ‘Despite such huge chaos at the national level, only a warning was given and one officer was removed. In Parliament, the Civil Aviation Minister had talked about strict action, but just giving a warning is strict action.
Along with this, Randhawa also raised questions on keeping the period of cancellation of Indigo flights only till 3-5 December and said that the flight cancellation lasted from 2 December to 15 December. Citing the example of the US Department of Transportation, FIP said that in December 2022, it had imposed a fine of $140 million on Southwest Airlines for violation of consumer protection laws, which was distributed among the affected passengers. The pilot organization also said that the fine cannot replace safety standards like flight duty time limit (FDTL) as these are directly related to passengers and flight safety.
