IndiGo Profit Crashes 75% to Rs 613 Crore After Flight Disruptions

India’s largest airline IndiGo reported a sharp fall in quarterly profit for the December quarter due to the large-scale cancellation of flights and delay of hundreds more. The airline’s quarterly profit  plunged 75% to Rs 6.13 billion due to mass flight disruptions, as a result of poor roster planning.

The first week of December was chaotic for the airline with the cancellations and delays forcing IndiGo to spend money on customer support, including accommodation, transport, meals and issuing travel vouchers to many stranded passengers.

Following the disruption, India’s aviation regulator DGCA imposed a penalty of Rs 22 crore.

IndiGo expects its unit costs, the average cost of flying an aircraft seat, to grow in the mid-single-digit percentage range for the financial year ending in March 2026, in contrast with the earlier projection of no rise in costs, CFO Gaurav Negi said.

The rise in cost is because IndiGo is relying on damp-leased jets to meet the demand as several jets remain grounded due to Pratt & Whitney engine issues, Negi added. Under a damp lease, IndiGo provides the cabin crew, while the jet and pilots are provided by the lessor.

Also, IndiGo is now facing a competition probe and is also under the increased scrutiny of the DGCA following the mass flight disruptions. The DGCA curtailed the airline’s capacity by 10% for the winter schedule. The senior executives have been warned and the carrier has also been fined.

The depreciating local currency is also increasing the overall expenses for the company as 60% of the IndiGo’s costs are directly or indirectly dollar-denominated.

It was reported that the dollar-denominated supplementary aircraft leases, which is the second-largest expense, jumped 19%.