In a rare and scathing public outcry, an IndiGo employee has penned an explosive open letter to his fellow citizens and the airline’s top management, laying bare years of internal decay, unchecked arrogance and an employee crisis that the writer claims has been “years in the making”.

Circulating widely on social media, the letter shared provides a raw, first-hand account of what the author describes as a slow but steady collapse of India’s largest airline, one that did not happen overnight but developed over years of ignored warnings, deteriorating working conditions and a culture of fear.

“Nothing happened overnight”

The writer, who identifies himself as a long-time employee of IndiGo, reflects on the airline’s early days in 2006, when teams were proud of what they were building. But that pride, the letter states, “turned into arrogance and growth turned into greed,” with a new internal attitude taking root: We are too big to fail.

The letter alleges that IndiGo aggressively provisioned certain routes to stifle competition, affecting newer airlines such as Akasa Air. While passengers celebrated IndiGo’s punctuality and market dominance, the author claims it came at the expense of staff welfare and operational sanity.

“Titles became more important”

An important part of the letter highlights what the writer calls an unhealthy explosion of hierarchy. People “who couldn’t even write a proper email” started rising to the vice president level, the author alleges, primarily because those positions unlocked ESOPs and influence.

Employees, including pilots, engineers and ground staff, were “compressed” to justify the increasing layers of leadership. Pilots who voiced concerns about unsafe duty hours, fatigue and operational pressures were allegedly yelled at, intimidated or humiliated, sometimes by senior management at head office.

“No consequences. No responsibility. Just fear,” the letter states.

Ground staff earning as little as ₹16,000 to ₹18,000 a month were said to be stretched to extreme limits: running fast through planes, juggling multiple tasks and doing “three-person” work.

“we are empty”

The letter paints a picture of an emotionally drained and physically drained workforce. Cabin crew reportedly cried in the galley between greeting passengers. Engineers, the writer claims, multitasked through the aircraft with almost no supervision or rest.

Even the way it addressed passengers underwent an internal change, the letter states. Employees were instructed to call passengers “customers.” The reason: “If you call them passengers, they’ll think they own the airline.” The employee argues that this change in mindset reflected a deeper distancing from those who actually trust IndiGo with their lives.

‘We felt alone. always alone

The letter also reserves sharp criticism for India’s aviation regulator.

According to the author, license validations for pilots who wanted to move overseas were deliberately delayed, with whispers of “unofficial prices” circulating for faster processing. When fatigue rules evolved in ways that worsened schedules, the writer says workers had no union, no representation, and no watchdog strong enough to intervene.

The airline’s massive expansion, record profits and industry dominance stand in stark contrast to what the writer describes as an employee base pushed to the limit.

The author argues that the crisis consumers see today—flight disruptions, delays, and staff shortages—is just the end result of years of systemic stress.

“We’ve been broken up for years,” the letter concludes. “We watched the system break down as leadership drifted in and out of Europe as we prayed for one more hour of respite.”

While IndiGo has yet to issue a statement responding to the viral letter, the post has sparked a wave of discussion within aviation circles and among passengers who say their recent travel experiences reflect the frustrations described.