India's aviation sector was thrown into disarray on Friday as the country's largest carrier, IndiGo, grappled with a severe operational crisis, leading to massive disruptions at major airports and a frantic surge in airfares.
Scenes of Chaos at Major Airports
Videos circulating from airports in Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, and Bengaluru depicted scenes of utter chaos. Passengers were seen lying on terminal floors, forming serpentine queues at airline counters, and desperately pleading for information. The widespread cancellations and delays, often announced with little notice, left thousands of travellers stranded and exhausted.
"People are just lying everywhere. No one is telling us anything," a distressed flyer at Mumbai airport was heard saying in one of the viral clips, capturing the widespread frustration and lack of communication from the airline's staff.
Scale of the Disruption and Root Causes
Sources indicated that IndiGo cancelled more than 400 flights nationwide on Friday, with a large number of others facing significant delays. The breakdown was stark at individual hubs:
- Delhi's IGI Airport: Over 220 arrivals and departures were cancelled.
- Bengaluru Airport: Reported more than 100 cancellations.
- Hyderabad Airport: Saw over 90 flights cancelled.
The crisis has been attributed to severe cabin crew shortages and other internal issues, which caused IndiGo's on-time performance to plummet to a shocking 8.5% on Thursday—its lowest ever recorded figure. The situation worsened on Friday when Delhi airport announced the cancellation of all IndiGo domestic departures until 11.59 pm.
Skyrocketing Fares and Passenger Anguish
With IndiGo, which commands a 64% share of the domestic market and operates over 2,200 daily flights, effectively crippled, demand for seats on other airlines exploded. This led to airfares reaching staggering levels across key routes.
For Sunday travel, one-way economy fares on non-IndiGo airlines were quoted at Rs 21,500 to Rs 39,000 for Delhi-Mumbai and around Rs 20,000 to Rs 23,000 for Bengaluru-Kolkata. Routes from smaller cities saw even sharper spikes, with Udaipur to Delhi costing between Rs 15,300 and Rs 26,400.
An industry official explained, "A large segment of the travelling public is now chasing tickets of the remaining 34% market share carriers, so fares are skyrocketing." Thousands of stranded passengers reported having no option but to purchase these exorbitantly priced tickets to return home.
The civil aviation ministry and the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) are closely monitoring the situation. In a concerning development, IndiGo has informed the regulator that it expects full operational stabilisation only by February 10, 2026. For now, the visual evidence from across the country tells a clear story of India's busiest airports struggling to cope as its largest airline buckles under unprecedented pressure.
