Centre tells IndiGo to cut over 200 daily flights. Can other airlines fill the gap? – Firstpost

IndiGo is facing government action after the airline cancelled thousands of flights last week, stranding several flyers across the country. The mass disruptions have continued this week, with more than 70 flights suspended today (December 10).

After the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) slashed the Indian carrier’s winter schedule by five per cent, the Centre curtailed its flight operations by another five per cent. This could result in a reduction of about 216 IndiGo flights daily.

Which airline will fill this gap? We take a look.

IndiGo flights cut by 10%

The Centre has ordered
IndiGo to cut 10 per cent of its winter schedule, doubling the 5 per cent cut earlier imposed by India’s aviation watchdog DGCA.

“The ministry considers it necessary to curtail the overall IndiGo routes, which will help in stabilising the airline’s operations and lead to reduced cancellations. A curtailment of 10% has been ordered. While abiding with it, Indigo will continue to cover all its destinations as before,” Union Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu posted on X Tuesday evening.

During the last week, many passengers faced severe inconvenience due to Indigo’s internal mismanagement of crew rosters, flight schedules and inadequate communication. While the enquiry and necessary actions are underway, another meeting with Indigo’s top management was held to… pic.twitter.com/yw9jt3dtLR

— Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu (@RamMNK) December 9, 2025

This came after Minister of Civil Aviation Ram Mohan Naidu met IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers following the recent travel disruption. IndiGo has cancelled more than 5,000 flights since November after it failed to prepare for new crew-rostering rules that give pilots and cabin crew more rest.

IndiGo attributed the disruption to a “compounding effect of multiple factors which coincided in lesser or greater measure” in an “unfortunate and unforeseeable confluence.”

The airline operates more than 2,300 domestic and international flights every day. Sources told Times of India (TOI) that IndiGo may fly about 1,800-1,900 fewer planes during its winter schedule, meaning a cut of about 500 daily flights, to stabilise operations.

For the summer schedule, IndiGo was approved to operate 14,158 weekly domestic flights. For the winter schedule that began October 26, its weekly domestic flights were enhanced by six per cent to 15,014.

The DGCA had earlier directed the Indian airline, which commands a 60 per cent market share, to reduce operations “across sectors, especially on high-demand, high-frequency flights, and to avoid single-flight operations on a sector by IndiGo.”

Can airlines fill the gap?

IndiGo’s 10 per cent curtailed flight operations would lead to over 200 fewer daily flights. This is the combined passenger strength of Akasa and SpiceJet.

To fill this gap, IndiGo’s 10 per cent share will be divided among Air India, SpiceJet, Akasa and “other reliable operators” depending on their fleet strength and capacity, as per India Today’s sources.

While the Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) is keen on the redistribution being done quickly, officials do not want the reallocated flights being cancelled as well.

“Hence, reallocation could be done as per resources available with these operators,” the sources added.

Amid
IndiGo’s crisis, SpiceJet has announced plans to increase up to 100 daily flights in its winter schedule. However, the expansion depends on regulatory approval.

The airline told Economic Times (ET) that the move shows “strong and growing demand across key routes.” SpiceJet added that the additions provide “operational flexibility to deploy incremental capacity on high-demand routes and improve overall network resilience.”

Air India is hiring more pilots as IndiGo faces crew shortages. The Tata-owned airline has said it is seeking experienced A320 pilots in command (pilot qualified to be captain) with a minimum of 100 (PIC) hours on the A320 family aircraft. “Preference shall be given to candidates who are available to join immediately,” its advertisement stated.

Air India Express has decided to add 20-24 aircraft to its fleet next year, as well as retrofit 50 of its Boeing 737-8 aircraft. As per ET sources, Air India Express has inducted 15 aircraft in the past six months, taking its fleet size to 115.

In October, Akasa Air had said it would enhance services on domestic and international routes, including introducing non-stop services to Abu Dhabi from Cochin and Chennai.

The young carrier said its third operational base will be Delhi after Bengaluru and Mumbai, saying it will operate over 165 weekly departures from the national capital.

For the most part this year, IndiGo controlled 63-65 per cent market share, followed by the Air India group’s 26-27 per cent. Akasa held just over five per cent, while SpiceJet has about two per cent.

Reports say that IndiGo’s market share will fall to around 55-57 per cent once the redistribution is complete.

With inputs from agencies