On Tuesday the airline IndiGo announced that its chief executive Pieter Elbers had resigned. This decision follows months of continuous public scrutiny over the airline’s mass cancellations in December last year. Pieter Elbers cited personal reasons as the motive of his resignation, in a resignation letter to Rahul Bhatia.
Cancellations in December and other Moments for the Airline
In December, the carrier failed to account and plan properly for pilot rest and duty rules, which resulted in 4,500 flights being cancelled and tens of thousands of passengers being stranded without a plane. The airline has approximately 65% of the market share of India’s aviation market. This has been the airline’s largest crisis in its 20 years of existence, and the backlash over the way it had been managed still resonates to this day. Elbers said the airline misjudged the number of pilots it would need after the new duty and rest rules. Yet, the former CEO has been criticized for “inadequate overall oversight of flight operations and crisis management” by regulators. India’s aviation regulator also fined IndiGo $2.45 million.
Who is stepping up into his place?
At the moment, co-founder of the airline, Rahul Bhatia, will step back into his place in the interim. IndiGo former CEO Pieter Elbers resigned after only a little bit over three years at the helm of the company, allowing the co-founder to set the company straight.
In his resignation letter Pieter Elbers writes “It has been both an honour and privilege to serve as IndiGo CEO these past years, since September 2022, and being a part of the great IndiGo family, it’s beautiful growth story and the steps we have made together in this”.
What do you think of the power turnover? Is it the right choice to save IndiGo from backlash? Let us know in the comments!
