IndiGo CEO Pieter Elbers resigns with immediate effect

Dubai: IndiGo said on Tuesday that Chief Executive Officer Pieter Elbers has resigned with immediate effect for personal reasons, months after the airline faced widespread flight cancellations that drew regulatory scrutiny.

India’s largest airline said its Managing Director and co-founder Rahul Bhatia will oversee operations on an interim basis until a successor is appointed.

Elbers submitted his resignation in a letter to Bhatia requesting that his notice period be waived.

“As per our conversation, due to personal reasons, I herewith submit my resignation from the position of CEO of IndiGo with effect from today. I would request that notice period may be waived off,” Elbers wrote.

“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, its beautiful growth story and the steps we have made together in this.”

Oversaw expansion

Elbers took over as chief executive in September 2022 and oversaw a period of expansion for the airline.

During his tenure, IndiGo crossed $10 billion in revenue, expanded its fleet to more than 440 aircraft, and placed a record order for 500 Airbus A320-family planes.

His tenure, however, was overshadowed by the airline’s largest operational disruption in December 2025. The crisis was triggered by the carrier’s struggle to implement new pilot fatigue regulations introduced by India’s aviation regulator, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).

Between December 3 and December 5, IndiGo cancelled more than 2,500 flights and delayed nearly 1,900 others, affecting more than 300,000 passengers and paralysing parts of the country’s aviation network.

The DGCA imposed a record fine of ₹22.20 crore on the airline and issued show-cause notices to Elbers.

Although he initially remained in the role despite calls for his resignation, the operational crisis damaged IndiGo’s reputation for punctuality and triggered scrutiny from regulators and the public.