IndiGo Crisis Ongoing: Madinah-Hyderabad Flight Diverted to Ahmedabad Due to Bomb Threat

As if the challenges for domestic airline IndiGo were not significant already, last week the airline faced further issues by having to cancel hundreds of flights due to a staff shortage. The Gurugram-based carrier’s flight from Madinah in Saudi Arabia to Hyderabad was diverted to Ahmedabad on December 4 following a bomb threat, according to police officials.

The flight successfully landed at Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport around 12:30 pm, and all passengers and crew members were safely deboarded for a comprehensive search of the aircraft, stated Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 4) Atul Bansal.

The domestic airline has been struggling to maintain the necessary crew to operate flights amidst new flight-duty and rest-period regulations for pilots. “IndiGo cancelled more than 180 flights on Thursday across three airports—Mumbai, Delhi, and Bengaluru,” a source informed PTI.
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At Mumbai airport, the number of cancellations reached 86 (41 arrivals and 45 departures) for the day, while Bengaluru saw 73 flights cancelled, including 41 arrivals, according to the source.

In addition, 33 flights were cancelled at Delhi Airport on Thursday, the source reported, indicating that “the total number of cancellations may rise by the end of the day.”

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The airline’s On-Time Performance (OTP) plummeted to 19.7% at six major airports—Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad—on December 3, down from nearly half the previous day, when it was 35%.

“IndiGo has been experiencing a serious crew shortage since the second phase of the Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) regulations was implemented, resulting in numerous cancellations and significant delays across airports,” a source informed PTI on December 4.

The DGCA has announced that it is investigating the disruptions affecting IndiGo flights and has requested the airline to provide explanations for the current situation, along with its plans to mitigate the number of flight cancellations and delays.

It is worth noting that the pilots’ organization, the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP), has claimed that IndiGo, despite having a two-year preparatory period before fully implementing the new flight duty and rest period regulations for cockpit crew, “inexplicably” instituted a “hiring freeze.”

FIP has called upon the safety regulator, DGCA, to refrain from approving the airlines’ seasonal flight schedules unless adequate staff is in place to operate services “safely and reliably” in accordance with the New Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) regulations.