IndiGo 'Back On Its Feet', Focus Now On What Led To This Crisis, Says CEO Pieter Elbers
The IndiGo CEO said the airline is now shifting its focus internally to draw "lessons learned" from the crisis to "emerge stronger".
Indigo CEO Pieter Elbers on Tuesday announced that the carrier’s operations are "fully stabilised", confirming that the airline is "back on its feet" following a major operational disruption that led to mass cancellations and stranded thousands of passengers.
In a direct address to customers, Elbers expressed a "profuse apology" for the distress caused by the cancellations. "We have let you down when a major operational disruption happened, and we're sorry for that," he stated.
The airline confirmed that its initial focus was on swiftly getting all stranded and delayed passengers to their destinations. Simultaneously, a "no questions asked" refund process was initiated, with "lakhs of customers" already receiving full refunds and the process continuing daily. Furthermore, teams have been working to return "most of the bags stuck at airports," with remaining deliveries expected soon.
Elbers detailed the rapid restoration of the flight network, which was undertaken "on a war footing". Starting from a low of only 700 flights on Dec. 5, the carrier steadily improved its schedule: 1,500 on Dec. 6, 1,650 on the Dec. 7, and over 1,800 on Dec. 8 and Dec. 9.
The CEO also confirmed that as of Dec. 9, the airline has accelerated its recovery timeline.
"I can confirm now that today... our operations are fully stabilised," he stated, beating the earlier predicted normalisation window of Dec. 10-15.
Elbers said that the airline is now shifting its focus internally to draw "lessons learned" from the crisis to "emerge stronger."
Despite acknowledging residual customer "angst," Elbers ended on a positive note, mentioning "heartwarming messages" they have received and the return of customers booking flights. He asking them to "keep the faith."
"Thank you for accepting our apology and thank you for your patience, understanding and support during this difficult time. Please keep the faith in us. We're still the airline you have known us to be. Thank you," he concluded.
Meanwhile, the carrier is likely to lose some of its routes to other domestic airlines during the ongoing winter schedule after Union Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu said the government will "definitely" reduce IndiGo slots.
The InterGlobe Aviation-controlled airline operates over 2,200 flights per day from 90-odd domestic destinations and 40-plus abroad destinations.
He said the routes, which will be reduced from IndiGo's schedule, will be given to other carriers. He added that when the airline demonstrates the ability to operate them, they will be returned to IndiGo.
