"Refunds From December 3, Full Waiver": Under-Pressure IndiGo To Customers

IndiGo – limping back to normalcy after severe flight delays last week – told irate customers Monday evening refunds for flights cancelled between December 3 and 15 "are being processed".

In its post on X the budget carrier also offered a "full waiver on change and cancellation requests" and directed passengers to a 'cancellation/claim refund' web page.

"We are deeply sorry for the disruption to your journey," the airline, which controls 60 per cent of the market, "Please be assured our teams on the ground and behind the scenes are working tirelessly to support all affected customers and restore normal ops as quickly as possible."

But there was a significant detail in the airline's social media post – it preponed the date from which it was offering refunds by 48 hours, underlining the scale of the crisis it is battling.

Screengrab from image posted on X by @IndiGo6E

On Saturday IndiGo apologised, again, for "hardships caused", and said: "No questions asked… We will offer full waiver on all cancellations and reschedule requests for bookings between December 5 and December 15. We are deeply sorry for the hardships caused."

pic.twitter.com/hbw70EsPZz

— IndiGo (@IndiGo6E) December 6, 2025

Earlier today the Civil Aviation Ministry told NDTV the airline has so far refunded over 9.5 lakh tickets – sold between November 21 and December 7 – worth Rs 827 crore. The majority – nearly six lakh worth Rs 569 crore – were for flights from December 1 to 7, when the crisis peaked.

READ | IndiGo Refunds Rs 827 Crore In 2 Weeks, Returns 4,500 Of 9,000 Bags

The ministry had directed the airline to clear all pending refunds without delay and also to not levy rescheduling charges for passengers whose travel plans were impacted by cancellations.

The Aviation Ministry has had IndiGo under intense scrutiny since the crisis broke on Monday last, and Minister Rammonan Naidu today warned of tough action to "set an example".

READ | "Will Set Example For Every Airline": Aviation Minister On IndiGo Crisis

At the centre of this chaos are new flight safety rules the government announced nearly two years back. These rules focused on tackling pilot fatigue, a key factor behind plane accidents, by increasing downtime. The rules' implementation required airlines to recruit more pilots.

IndiGo, which runs 2,200 flights daily and has traditionally focused on minimising downtime, fell short of crew as the new rules kicked in. This led to hundreds of cancellations and ordeal for passengers.

As the situation spiralled out of control, aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation, temporarily relaxed the new norms.

The IndiGo crisis also prompted the opposition to flag the duopolistic nature of the Indian civil aviation sector, with IndiGo and Air India holding the bulk of the market share. The government has responded that it has always encouraged the entry of new players in the sector.