DGCA seeks clarification from IndiGo on flight delay; shares fall 4%

Shares of InterGlobe Aviation -- parent firm of IndiGo -- fell 3.7 per cent to Rs 1,589 apiece on the BSE in Monday's intra-day trade amid reports that a large number of cabin crew members of the airline did not report for duty on Saturday, delaying over 50 per cent of the flights. Aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has reportedly sought a clarification from IndiGo.

DGCA officials told news agency ANI that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation took "strong cognizance against IndiGo and (has) ought a clarification/ explanation behind the massive flight delays nationwide".

According to a Business Standard report the staff went for job interviews but reported sick at the last moment, throwing the airline's operations in jeopardy. Tata-owned Air India, as well as Jet and Akasa, is in the midst of a massive recruitment drive.

"Most delays happened in Delhi — IndiGo’s largest base. As a result, the entire network saw a cascading impact," the report said. READ HERE

IndiGo, known for its on-time performance, had only 45 per cent of its flights departing on time; more than 850 flights took off more than 15 minutes after their scheduled time. The airline operated around 1,600 flights on Friday and had to cancel around 50 flights.

At 10:00 AM, shares of the airline were down 2.4 per cent at Rs 1,610 per share as against a 0.26 per cent dip in the BSE Sensex. Peer firm SpiceJet's shares were lower by 1.5 per cent.