IndiGo fiasco fallout: Airline appoints new head of operations control centre

NEW DELHI: IndiGo has finally started acting against officials who were seen to be responsible for last Dec flight fiasco. The airline on Friday appointed Captain Rohit Rikhye as the head of its operations control centre (OCC), removing Jason Herter from the position. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) had in its report on the IndiGo crisis directed removing Herter from the position of OCC senior VP and also ordered that he not be given any accountable position in the future.

“Captain Rohit Rikhye, currently chief pilot (standards, quality assurance and operation safety, has been appointed the new head of OCC. He is someone from flight operations and has handled rostering. He is aware of what was causing concern to pilots in rostering and will ensure that those issues are resolved. He as considered among the most suitable for the OCC job,” said people in the know.

They add there will be more action in coming weeks. “While Herter will move to another position, some heads will roll too,” sources said. Since the primary focus is on maintaining operational stability and ensuring that there’s no repeat of the Dec crisis, removal of people found responsible for the same had taken a second spot.

Almost every second day, DGCA officials visit the airline office. Clearly, no one — airline or authorities — can afford to burn their fingers again. The regulator had identified “over-optimisation of operations, inadequate regulatory preparedness along with deficiencies in system software support and shortcomings in management structure & operational control” as the primary causes for the disruption. “The airline’s management failed to adequately identify planning deficiencies, maintain sufficient operational buffer, and effectively implement the revised FDTL provisions,” the report says.

IndiGo’s “overriding focus on maximising utilisation of crew” was found to have significantly reduced roster buffer margins. “Crew rosters were designed to maximise duty periods… and minimal recovery margins. This compromised roster integrity and adversely impacted operational resilience,” it had said.

Now the changes being made are aimed at ensuring the same does not recur.