IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers has resigned after a flight crisis that nearly grounded Indian aviation. Rahul Bhatia, co-founder and managing director, has taken charge on an interim basis.
Elbers cited personal reasons for his resignation, which comes after a little over three years at the helm of India's largest airline.
Under Elbers' leadership, IndiGo crossed the $10-billion revenue mark, expanded its fleet to over 440 aircraft, and placed a historic order for 500 Airbus A320-family planes.
However, his tenure was marred by an operational meltdown in December 2025, triggered by IndiGo's struggle to implement new rules designed to prevent pilot fatigue.
The flight crisis resulted in over 2,500 flights being cancelled and nearly 1,900 more being delayed, affecting over 300,000 passengers.
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation imposed a record fine of ₹22.20 crore and issued show-cause notices to Elbers.
Bhatia has promised to fix what's broken and has vowed to sharpen IndiGo's strategic focus on serving India and her people with an airline that is professionally managed, operationally reliable, and globally respected.
