IndiGo CEO Receives Show Cause Notice Amid India's Worst Aviation Crisis
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India's aviation regulator, DGCA, has issued a show cause notice to IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers, citing significant lapses in planning, oversight, and resource management. The notice, issued on Saturday, gives Elbers 24 hours to respond, warning that failure to do so will result in enforcement action without his input. The crisis, which began on Tuesday, has seen IndiGo cancel over 3,600 flights, leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded at airports. The airline has been criticized for its handling of the situation, with airfares surging to five to ten times normal rates. In an effort to protect passengers, the civil aviation ministry has imposed emergency fare caps on domestic flights, capping airfares at ₹7,500 for routes up to 500km and ₹18,000 for routes above 1,500km. The ministry has also ordered IndiGo to complete all refunds by Sunday evening. IndiGo has described the mass cancellations as a deliberate "reboot" strategy, aimed at improving stability and connectivity. However, the airline's reliance on a single aircraft type, the Airbus A320, has been criticized for leaving it vulnerable to operational stress. The DGCA's notice highlights the airline's failure to provision adequate arrangements to implement revised crew fatigue rules and provide requisite facilities to passengers during massive flight disruptions. The regulator has accused the airline of "prima facie non-compliance" with Aircraft Rules and Civil Aviation Requirements. IndiGo's shares have plummeted 7.3% over the four trading days since the crisis began, eroding market capitalisation by ₹16,190 crore. The airline, which commands 60% of India's domestic market, operates more than 2,000 flights daily with a fleet exceeding 400 aircraft.
