January worst month for fliers: DGCA data

Figures show 5.5 lakh passengers were affected in disruptions like delays and cancellations in the first month of the year

In January 2024, the Indian aviation sector witnessed a tumultuous period, with a total of 5,52,231 passengers facing disruptions due to various issues, such as denied boarding, flight cancellations, and delays. According to the DGCA, a total of 732 official complaints were lodged in January 2024, with more than half of them being related to flight problems.
 
“The overall cancellation rate of scheduled domestic airlines for the month stood at 3.67%. Weather conditions emerged as the primary reason for flight cancellations, accounting for 82.8% of the total cancellations,” said a senior official from DGCA. “Among the complaints received by scheduled domestic airlines in January 2024, issues related to flight problems were predominant. The number of complaints per 10,000 passengers carried was approximately 0.56, indicating a significant number of dissatisfied passengers,” he added.

People queue up to board a domestic flight while others wait for their flights at T2. File pic

Another official from DGCA said, “The figures are very concerning. The number of flights delayed is way too many which is why the number of passengers affected is also high. This has a direct connection with the airlines on-time performance reports. Since the on-time performance report of airlines has not been great this month, the number of passengers affected is also very high.

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“There are various factors because of which the performance of an airline is hampered. Many times, the crew of the flight arrives late and causes delay while other times, some unforeseen incident causes a delay like the recent Bomb threat sent to Akasa Air just because someone’s wife was late to reach the airport and boarding was stopped. So, the husband of this passenger called up the Akasa airlines claiming that the flight had a bomb installed in it. The flight was grounded because of this and a thorough search needed to be done causing delay.”

Experts comment

Captain Mohan Ranganathan, an aviation expert while talking to mid-day said, “There was a time when airlines used to claim reliability, but now, the performance has deteriorated significantly. If this (number of passengers affected due to flight delays and cancellations) is the case in clear weather months, what will happen during the monsoon season when flights are bound to get delayed due to weather conditions? The passengers are the ones who have to face major inconvenience due to the delayed flight departures and arrivals.”

“Once a boarding pass is issued to a passenger, it is a contract between the passenger and the airline where it is the airline's responsibility in cases of delays and cancellations. In such conditions, the regulator is playing into the hands of the airlines. The CAR (Civil Aviation Requirements) has never been enforced in any such cases. Airlines are the ones controlling the DGCA which is why no stringent action has been taken. If there are delays and cancellations, the refund rules are loaded towards the airlines and not to the passenger's benefit. All the rules that the ministry and DGCA have formed have several grey areas which the airlines can use and deny repayments or refunds causing a severe distressing situation for the passengers affected,” he added.

82.8%
Cancellations related to weather conditions

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