Regarding the Viral Photo of IndiGo’s CEO, the Aviation Ministry Issues an Apology to the Nation

Union Aviation Minister K. Ram Mohan Naidu has responded to the controversy surrounding a widely circulated image of IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers. In the photo, taken during a meeting between the airline’s leadership and government officials amid the ongoing IndiGo crisis, Elbers is seen standing with folded hands. The Minister confirmed that the gesture was indeed an apology directed at the nation.

“He folded his hands, he was apologising not only to me but to the people of the country who faced difficulty,” Naidu said in an interview with India Today TV, addressing speculation regarding the authenticity and context of the viral image.

The Ministry of Civil Aviation had summoned Elbers on Tuesday to review the escalating situation at airports nationwide, where nearly two weeks of massive flight delays and cancellations had caused severe inconvenience to passengers. Following this meeting, the photo of Elbers with folded hands began circulating online, sparking widespread reaction.

During the discussions, the Ministry issued several significant directives aimed at stabilising operations. One of the key decisions was to instruct IndiGo, India’s largest airline, to reduce its current operations by 10 percent to streamline scheduling and prevent further disruptions.

IndiGo agreed to comply with the order, confirming that it would continue to serve all its existing destinations while implementing the mandated 10% reduction in operations set by the Ministry.

Speaking at Agenda AajTak, Naidu described the ongoing crisis as a result of IndiGo’s “gross mismanagement.” Meanwhile, CEO Pieter Elbers told India Today TV that he himself was taken aback by the severity of the disruptions, adding that the situation could have been avoided.

“The problem was solely due to IndiGo’s egregious mismanagement. We saw the domino effect of flight cancellations on December 3 and 4 because of an anomaly with their internal crew rostering system, which could have been avoided under the new Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) guidelines. Unfortunately, that did not happen,” Naidu explained.

As the airline works to restore normalcy, public scrutiny remains high. The now-viral image of the IndiGo CEO has become a symbol of accountability amid one of the most significant operational crises the airline has faced in years.