DGCA flags flight delays and soaring complaints amidst monsoon woes

The official also shared the OTP record for airlines at Mumbai airport

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has highlighted several causes of delays in April and raised concerns about on-time performance dropping during the monsoon season, as well as the number of complaints lodged by passengers. According to a DGCA report, IndiGo transported the highest percentage of passengers among all airlines, while Akasa Air held the top position for on-time performance (OTP).

A senior DGCA official told mid-day, "According to our reports, 1.32 crore passengers travelled domestically in April. IndiGo holds the maximum share of passengers, which is 80 lakh." The official also shared the OTP record for airlines at Mumbai airport, stating, "April can be considered a good month for the Indian domestic aviation sector, at least for Mumbai, considering that no airline's OTP is below 50 per cent. However, with the fast-approaching monsoon, performance will drop drastically due to weather conditions causing flight delays for safety reasons. On a pan-India level, the OTP of airlines has not seen an improvement from the previous month."

Another senior DGCA official raised concerns about the number of passenger complaints lodged with the DGCA in April and recalled data from previous months. He stated, "We received a total of 774 complaints in April alone, and the number of complaints since January 1 has already surpassed 3,000. This is very concerning. This has not been the case in the past few years, where the number of complaints lodged with DGCA surpassed 3,000 in just four months. We still have two complaints open against Alliance Air, but the remaining 772 complaints have been closed and responded to."

He also explained, "The maximum number of delays in April were caused by recreational purposes. Recreational delay refers to the late arrival of the incoming aircraft, connecting flight, crew, or cargo. Since one aircraft flies multiple legs in a day, one delayed leg causes the next leg to delay, creating a cascading effect where the amount of delay increases with each leg."

1.32 cr
Total no of flyers in April

774
No of complaints in April