IndiGo pays Rs 164 cr for flight disruptions

Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu on Monday informed the Rajya Sabha that passengers affected by large-scale IndiGo flight cancellations in early December have received compensation worth about Rs 163.92 crore in the form of travel coupons.

Responding during Question Hour, the minister said around 3.64 lakh passengers were impacted when hundreds of IndiGo flights were cancelled in the first week of December. The disruptions occurred due to a shortage of pilots after the deadline for implementing revised Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) norms expired.

Naidu said Rs 43.81 crore has already been directly disbursed after validating passenger claims. In addition, the airline issued travel coupons worth Rs 10,000 each to affected passengers as a gesture of support, taking the total compensation distributed to Rs 163.92 crore. Passengers who are yet to validate their travel details may also receive compensation.

The government has blamed the airline for inadequate planning in implementing the FDTL norms. Authorities are now closely monitoring airline schedules and have asked IndiGo to strengthen staffing.