Why IndiGo Cancelled 57 Flights Amid Bad Weather and DGCA Scrutiny

Domestic carrier IndiGo cancelled 57 flights across its network on Saturday, December 27, citing "bad weather" at various airports. This disruption affects major hubs like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, and Kolkata, among others, according to the airline's website.

This latest wave of IndiGo flight cancellations continues a trend seen over the past week, largely attributed to adverse weather conditions. The airline also preemptively cancelled 13 flights for Sunday, with the majority citing "forecasted bad weather" and two due to "operational reasons."

The Impact of Winter Fog Operations

The cancellations coincide with the official winter fog window announced by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). This period runs from December 10 to February 10 of the following year.

During this window, airlines must adhere to strict DGCA fog operations (CAT-IIIB) norms. These rules mandate the rostering of pilots specially trained for low-visibility conditions. Airlines must also deploy aircraft equipped with CAT-IIIB-compliant systems for these operations.

Understanding CAT-III Landing Systems

Category-III is an advanced navigation system. It allows aircraft to land safely in dense fog.

• Category-III-A (CAT-III-A) enables a plane to land with a runway visual range (RVR) of 200 meters.
• Category-III-B (CAT-III-B) is more advanced. It permits landings when the RVR is under 50 meters.

These stringent requirements can lead to significant bad weather disruptions. They often result in delays and cancellations when weather conditions drop below the minimum RVR for an airport or aircraft. This is a common challenge for global aviation during winter. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) works to standardize global best practices for all-weather operations.

Operational Context and Regulatory Scrutiny

These weather-related issues compound existing challenges for IndiGo. The airline's operations remain under close DGCA monitoring.

Earlier this month, IndiGo faced massive disruptions. This included cancelling approximately 1,600 flights on a single day. The cause was stricter new norms related to pilot duty period and rest.

In response to the earlier crisis, the government ordered a 10% cut in the airline’s domestic flight schedule. This reduction amounted to about 214 flights per day.

• Original Winter Schedule: 15,014 domestic flights per week (approx. 2,144 per day).
• Current Curtailed Schedule: Limited to operating no more than 1,930 domestic flights per day.

Operating a curtailed domestic schedule means the airline has less flexibility. It has fewer options to manage unforeseen events like severe fog or weather. This lack of buffer makes the current bad weather disruptions more impactful on the overall network. Aviation news updates on regulatory compliance are crucial for industry stakeholders. You can find more information on commercial aviation news at flying.flights. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the US also enforces similar low-visibility standards for pilot and aircraft certification.