Chaos on IndiGo Mumbai–Krabi flight after pilot refuses to fly beyond duty hours

The incident, which occurred early Thursday morning, led to a delay of over three hours and an altercation between passengers and cabin crew.

The IndiGo flight, 6E 1085, was scheduled to depart Mumbai at 4:05 am but remained grounded well past its departure time, according to flight-tracking data from Flightradar24.

Videos circulating on social media show angry passengers confronting cabin crew members, accusing the airline of mismanagement. In one clip, a passenger is heard shouting, “What about our plans that we have had?”

At the same time, another uses abusive language, demanding to know why the pilot was not addressing passengers directly. The footage also shows a passenger kicking the aircraft’s exit door.

According to social media claims, the pilot had informed the airline in advance that operating the flight would breach duty time limits.

However, passengers were reportedly boarded and kept inside the aircraft for nearly three hours before the situation escalated.

IndiGo responds

In a statement, IndiGo said the delay was caused by “a combination of reasons, including late arrival of the incoming aircraft, air traffic congestion, and crew exceeding their duty time limitations.”

The airline added that two passengers behaved inappropriately during the delay and were declared unruly.

“As per protocol, they were deboarded and handed over to security agencies, resulting in further delays,” the statement said.

IndiGo also said that meals and refreshments were served multiple times to reduce passenger inconvenience. “We remain committed to ensuring a safe and respectful environment for all and regret the inconvenience caused to our customers,” the airline added.

Despite being scheduled to land in Krabi at 10 am, the flight eventually arrived at around 1 pm, according to Flightradar24.