IndiGo fliers forced to wait five hours inside flight at Chennai airport; chaotic video goes viral

Commotion ensued at Chennai airport after IndiGo passengers were made to wait inside the plane for over five hours. The flight, reportedly bound for Singapore, was scheduled to depart at 7:30 am with 200 passengers onboard.

In a video now circulating online, angry passengers can be seen yelling and arguing with the ground staff to get off the plane. They even alleged that many felt suffocated without proper ventilation and were left without any access to food.

According to a report in The Times of India, the airline, in its defence, said the pilot noticed that the cabin temperature was above normal and there Flight Duty Time Limitations (FDTL) exceeded the permissible limits by the time the temperature reached optimal level.

One of the fliers reportedly alleged that those who were uncomfortable wanted to deboard, but were not allowed to do so by the ground staff.

The FDTL rules prohibit a pilot from being on duty above permissible limits to reduce the risk of fatigue during late-night and early-morning operations.

In December 2025, IndiGo disrupted the lives of many fliers by cancelling over 1,000 flights because it failed to comply with new crew-rostering rules that were meant to provide pilots and cabin crew more rest.

Since Indigo didn't plan ahead, the number of legally rested staff reduced drastically causing the airline to ground half of its fleet and leaving thousands of passengers - Indian and foreigners - deserted for days at airports.