DGCA summons IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers again amid ongoing flight disruptions

New Delhi, Dec 11 (IANS) IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers has been asked to appear before the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) again amid ongoing disruption in the domestic aviation sector, the airline said on Thursday. 

Elbers had appeared before officials earlier this week to explain the cause behind one of the biggest fiascos in the Indian civil aviation industry and to discuss the further course of action in order to bring normalcy.

As per reports, a four-member team would be questioning him this time.

To understand the real reasons behind the development, the DGCA had constituted an eight-member special team to keep a close watch on IndiGo's operations as the airline battles sustained disruptions across its network.

Two officials from the team would be stationed at IndiGo's corporate headquarters and look into daily processes to identify gaps that are affecting flight operations.

The aviation regulator's move came amid an escalating crisis that has caused thousands of cancellations and delays, severely congesting major airports nationwide and keeping passengers in long queues.

Meanwhile, hinting at a slow return to normalcy, the airline said it aims to operate more than 1,950 flights on Thursday.

In a statement, an IndiGo spokesperson shared that all destinations in the airline's network have been fully connected since December 8, and operations have stabilised since December 9.

"IndiGo continues to strengthen its operations, improving its services day by day to now operating 1,900+ flights that seamlessly connect all 138 destinations across our network," the spokesperson said.

IndiGo Chairman Vikram Singh Mehta said that the airline’s Board will bring in external technical experts to work with the management and identify the root causes behind last week’s massive flight disruptions.

In a detailed statement, Mehta said the experts will help ensure that such large-scale operational failures never happen again.

Mehta also apologised to passengers affected by the disruptions that occurred between December 3 and 5.

He said thousands of travellers were stranded, with many missing important personal events, business meetings, medical appointments and international connections. Baggage delays further added to the chaos.

"We are truly, truly sorry," he said, acknowledging that the airline failed to meet customer expectations.

The Chairman said that the Board had initially chosen not to make an early statement because it wanted the management, led by CEO Elbers, to focus on restoring operations.

"IndiGo is now operating more than 1,900 flights a day, connecting all 138 destinations, with on-time performance back to normal levels," he stated.

--IANS

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