"I expect entire operation to come back to normal by weekend", IndiGo CEO over bulk flight delays

By Ashoke Raj
Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], January 18 : Reacting to fog-induced flight disruptions, IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers on Thursday said that by the weekend and in due course of next week, he expects the entire operation to come back to normal.
Addressing the media in Hyderabad, the IndiGo CEO called the blanket of deep fog in northern India a "challenge".
Elbers said, "If you see, I am sure all of you have seen that we had probably the worst fog in many years. Many of our stations in northern India were severely impacted by the fog situation. If northern India is under a blanket of deep fog, we are having a challenge."
"I would expect that the cancellation (of flights) setting is completely back to normal, provided no more fog. But we can patrol a lot of things in life, but that, we can't. But it should be completely back to normal, I would say, by the weekend and in due course of next week, I do expect that our entire operation should be back to normal," the IndiGo CEO added.
Referring to an incident of alleged assault against an IndiGo pilot on board, Elbers said all that happened is not acceptable.
"It is not acceptable. It is unacceptable. It (matter) is with the authorities now," he said.
Meanwhile, several flights were delayed and a few were cancelled due to the prevailing fog.
According to IMD data, flight services at the Indira Gandhi International Airport were affected due to dense fog, with visibility reduced to between 50 and 100 metres from 12 am to 6.30 am on Thursday.
Earlier, on January 14, a passenger was seen hitting the pilot of an Indigo flight while he was making an announcement about a delay in departure at Delhi Airport.
Following an incident of alleged assault against an IndiGo pilot on board, the accused passenger was declared 'unruly', the airlines said in a statement on Monday.
As per an IndiGo statement, the accused passenger was handed over to the local law enforcement agencies for further action.
"On January 14, 2024, during the announcement of a flight delay by the first officer of flight 6E2175, a passenger assaulted the first officer. As per protocol, the passenger was declared unruly and handed over to the local law enforcement agencies for further action," the press statement of the IndiGo stated.
The statement further mentioned that an internal committee has been formed to address the matter and inclusion of the passenger in the 'no-fly list' is under consideration.
"The incident is being referred to the independent internal committee for appropriate action and inclusion of the passenger on the 'no-fly list' as laid down in regulatory guidelines. The safety and security of our passengers and crew are of paramount importance, and we maintain a zero-tolerance policy towards any such unacceptable behaviour," the statement further said.