On November 17, 2025, India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) fined IndiGo ₹20 lakh for a regulatory violation at Udaipur Airport. At first glance, this seems minor for India’s largest airline. But the real concern isn’t the amount—it’s the nature of the breach.
IndiGo created and implemented its own Standard Instrument Departure (SID) and Instrument Flight Procedure (IFP) for Udaipur Airport. While we are no aviation experts, apparently this is an extremely unusual event in aviation.
Why Is This So Serious?
A SID is a predefined route that aircraft follow after takeoff under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR). It ensures:
- Safety & Terrain Clearance: Avoids obstacles and terrain, includes altitude restrictions
- Airspace Management: Standardizes departure paths, helps ATC maintain separation
Globally, SIDs are sovereign procedures, designed and validated by state authorities like AAI in India, FAA in the U.S., or EASA in Europe. Airlines never create their own. Why? Because these procedures are part of airspace governance, tied to ICAO standards and strict frameworks like TERPS and Annex 4/19.
The Violation
Under Rule 133A of The Aircraft Rules, 1937 and DGCA CAR 9/EN, only AAI can promulgate SIDs and IFPs. IndiGo bypassed this process, implementing its own design without approval—a direct breach of regulatory authority.
Why Would IndiGo Do This? Perhaps operational efficiency, terrain concerns, or schedule reliability drove this decision. But whatever the motive, the act signals a troubling mindset: that an airline can override established safety governance for its own corporate goals.
The Bigger Picture
₹20 lakh is pocket change for IndiGo. But the precedent? Dangerous. Aviation thrives on uniformity and trust in regulatory systems. When a leading airline disregards these norms, it shakes the foundation of airspace safety.
This does not appear to be a technical slip—it has the looks of a deliberate bypass of a safety protocol. The fine may be small, but the implications are huge: compliance culture matters, and DGCA’s enforcement must remain uncompromising.