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Big fan of Indigo here for their reliability, on-time always, clean airplanes & friendly crew. I don't care much about the inflight meals and if hungry, I buy a pack or two of their almonds.

But what I really hate about Indigo is how their thin seats are starting to sag, especially on the older aircraft. It's the only airline on which my butt hurts after sitting for 2 hours. The seatbase on their older planes have no support left.

I think everyone on this thread is sharing his/her opinion rather than saying your observations are wrong and mine are right. Some love Indigo for what they offer, some do not what what they fail to deliver on. Everyone is right in their own sense.

Am sure if anyone from Indigo (or perhaps even Air India) is following this thread, it would be a great feedback on what works and what does not work for people. Let folks rant or appreciate, based on their opinion.

Just my 2c.

Really, apparently NOT the case. With above 60% market share, majority of sectors (apart from few metros / tier1 sectors), you will find only Indigo catering. So, yes, majority of Indian 'cattle' public are kind of in an arranged marriage situation with Indigo.
I believe that's why this thread.

Rather than only Indigo, let me put up my own observation on cattle class experiences with what we have now catering in domestic sectors.

Indigo:
They are the king now and they behave like that.
Good:

• On time. Now here is a catch. For same sector, AI would notify flying time as 1 hr 50 min, where Indigo notifies it as 2 hr 10 min. They always have 15 to 20 min buffer added to their flying time, which I believe added to the perception of reaching before time. Nothing to complain here, if they are smart, let give it to them.
• Efficient.
• Reach. Even they cater to sectors where Indian railway suffers.
• Availability. Most sectors have multiple options on different time (direct and connecting) which can suit to the need of maximum cattle.
• Convenience. Best website to book. Same goes to their mobile app.
• Executive. ideally, most travelers are corporate / business travelers, which ensure certain type of standard to it.

Bad:

• For the unfortunate case of flight being delayed, you are in a hell box. You have to be there to believe that and believe me, you don't want to be there.
• They are down right rude and unaccommodating (did I say King)
• Again, unfortunately if the well-oiled machine broke, for whatsoever reason, that brings out the most unpleasant side of them.
• I am FAT and the seats are not for me.
• Now a days, I see deterioration in their flight cleanliness, still better than others
• I wouldn't eat in Indigo, even if someone paying for it.
• Can be a hearsay, but what I noticed, even if the flight has consecutive seats, if you have not prebooked / adamant on not paying for seat at the booking counter, you will have your seats far apart. But again, it could be only me / that day was a bad day / the booking agent had a fight with his wife, can't say though.
• They promote fit India in their own way, aerobridge, what are those?
• Their buses are the best place to test different brand of perfumes and their effectiveness in hot sweaty weather.

Air Asia - AIX:
Every one can fly translates to poor cattle' only mean.
Good:

• Seat are comfortable and wide.
• Very good meal selections, especially their hot meal service which are most of the time piping hot. I prefer to have the onboard meal most of the time.
• They have a toned down frequent flyer kind of option which gives certain services free if you fly frequently.
• Ideally comes out cheaper than Indigo.
• Mostly have one male crew member as part of flight crew, which is good for old and ladies with heavy bags. They can help in putting the bags in overhead bin. (Indigo' all female crew are most of time unable to help needy passengers with heavy bags).
• You will get aerobridge treatment, big boon on rainy days.

Bad:

• Dirty / Old / badly maintained interior.
• Most of the flights are at least 10 years or more old, some even goes back to 20+ years of service history with them.
• Flight crew are hit or miss with their grooming.
• Check in bag always comes back to you with a ding or dang. If not, they will be needing a dry clean for sure (I wonder what they carry in the aircraft belly)
• Loos are best avoided. A/C controls are always leaky and lack flow when you need them open. Seat back pockets give you a vive of they were there in sometime of history.
• Mostly families are the pax, don't ever think about relaxing in flight. You are lucky if some kid on mom' lap wont kick your seat back whenever you are trying to sleep. (Works for me as I treat them as free back massages).
• Website and booking process is pathetic.

Air India:
Nothing works there.
Good:

• Umm, err, hmm. May be the seat are spacious.

Bad:

• Anything and everything you can think of and some even beyond your imagination. All my flights with Air India are marred with some or other issues.

Vistara:
Rich man' cattle class.
Good:

• Most of them, if you are on premium economy or above.
• Most of time within 10% of Indigo' cost for same sector
• I love the coffee, period.

Bad:

• Over priced for what they offer in economy class.
• Rude and most of time unaccommodating.
• Rich co-passenger can be intimidating in their own way. Never ever dare to be on your pajama / loose wear in any of the Vistara.
• Seat in economy class are even worse than Indigo.
• You'll miss Jet-airways

Spice:
Too much spice is bad for gut.
Good:

• They flies where no one flies, if they fly.

Bad:

• Apart from the only point in "good" section, nothing works for them. I would be OK in a Air India domestic than a Spice.

I am skipping all non-existing and regional players here.

In-Flight Meals
They are like popcorn in cinemas. No one forcing you to buy them and they are purely non-functional to the main objective of the service (cinema's are to watch movie and airlines to fly).
But, if you are paying a leg and a hand for them, you want them to be crisp, buttery and properly salted. similarly, when you are paying 200 rupees for a 40 rupees cup noodle, the least you expect hot water and not lukewarm water that is insufficient to even softening the noodles.

On time performance of the Indigo feels like a thing in the yesteryear now.
I have seen or heard numerous flights that were delayed even after boarding passengers on time.
Then, there are delays in the incoming flight.

Finally, there are cancellations out of the blue. Yes, this is a rant.
I had a 6.30pm flight today and since morning Indigo started spamming through SMS and WhatsApp instructing to arrive before time, no prohibited items in check-in bag blah blah. And then, all of sudden the next message said that the flight is cancelled!! And the explanation is so simple yet so ambiguous- cancelled due to operational reasons. Did the pilot suddenly decided to take the Sunday off?

The only nonstop alternative is a 11.30pm flight. I do not. Even if I go for refund, there are no cheaper flights available in the next 7 days.
Also, the 11.30pm flight, which is the only option available, was cheaper than 6.30pm flight when I made the booking. So, I’m paying more for a flight at a convenient time, which Indigo cancels just like that, and I have to take the cheaper flight at the odd hours even after paying a premium. :Frustrati

in another story, hope IndiGo does more to improve on their core services, as now they are named as one of the worst airlines globally.

The survey was done by by AirHelp, an EU claim processing agency and has ranked IndiGo at 103 out of the 109 airlines surveyed.

The bottom lot:



Link:

Indigo has been ranked amongst the worst airlines in the world according to 2024 AirHelp Score report. Indigo airlines has obviously questioned the ranking and I am not surprised by their reaction. Indigo airlines did take a beating for their poor services some time back, which often termed from bad to worse, even boorish at times. The low ranking, though, is indeed surprising. It can’t be among the worst or may be we don’t know it yet !

Tunisair claimed the dubious distinction of being the worst airlines of the world and was ranked the last at 109. The full report can be read at the following link:

https://m.economictimes.com/nri/visi.../115954230.cms

It's all relative. After traveling in some of the better international and national carriers (outside India), I realised about the pathetic customer service Indian travelers get from Indigo. It starts right from the check-in where long queues and unsupportive staff spoils the experience. Sometimes I have been asked to pay for half kg over weight limit. Boarding and in-flight experience can also be termed average at best. Aircrafts are some of the worst I have experienced. Seats hardly have cushions and feels like we are sitting on a log. Legroom is minimum, meal pricing is atrocious (they want you to buy snax even if all you want is a soda can).

In contrast, I have recently traveled in AirAsia which is also low cost carrier and may not be the best in business. But I was pleasantly surprised by the experience compared to Indigo. May be our bar has been set so low!

I guess we need more competition in India to keep the airlines in check and make sure they don't take passengers for granted.

It's totally off the thread and perhaps another one should be created for it if not already, but I don't believe in these " western" benchmarks and surveys anymore. I don't care what is the global ranking of United Airlines or AA vs Indigo simply because they don't compete with each other.If I choose an airline it is because it offers safe and convenient travel. Our media should stop riling it up and Indigo should also not make much fuss about it. If Tarom and Air Mauritius are ranked above Indigo as global players, it says a lot about the survey itself rather than the airline.

Quoting this post from another thread. I am no fan of any one airline versus another except Singapore and JAL {Japan Air Lines} I used to love Lufthansa but they have slipped in recent years. Went through that survey. This looks like one of those typical head in the sand European surveys with a over emphasis on tiny regional airlines of Europe and the expectations a budget European traveller has of an airline.

First about AirHelp, the author of the survey. They are a business that helps travellers get claims/compensations from airlines for various service shortfalls. AirHelp is not a neutral market survey organization. They use these surveys to build their business bridges with airlines. I won't say they are dishonest but there is a smell of "you scratch my back....". They are infamous for slanted surveys doled out each year. Our Indian media will lap up these surveys just because they are from a white source. White does not mean credibility or accuracy.

Indigo has room for improvement especially in its handling of its customers during check-in and boarding. Their punctuality is no longer what it was 10 years back but they do not deserve to be at the bottom of this list. But on the technical side of things Indigo is very good, I would say very very good. Certainly the monopolistic situation has gone to their head. Competition, when it comes, from Air India and others will play its part.

I can bet my name that Indigo has refused to be a customer of Air Help's claims and compensation programmes.

The survey puts United Airlines, known for extraordinary customer crappiness & violence in the top 10. It places Widroe who run a cold, smile-less but efficient regional service in the 4 Scandinavian countries in the first 10!!! They put Scandinavian Airlines {I've been both a customer and a vendor} which I would rate as one of the lousiest in service & organization, 19 notches above Singapore Airlines!! Scandinavian Airlines is one of the most disorganized and shabbily run outfits other than being financially too weak to even pay for spare parts and this survey places them way above Singapore Airlines. That alone should tell you how full of holes this survey is. I can spot dozens of such head scratching anomalies in their list.

So in conclusion Indigo need to improve their services but to place them so far down on the survey is a gross injustice. And we Indians as a collective need to stop going ga ga over any and every survey by a white organization.

I agree with everything the OP says. But 99% of my domestic flying is GOI-BOM / BOM-GOI. That's a 1 hour flight (Used to be 36 Min on an Airbus A320 and 45 Min on a Boeing 737 in the good old days of Indian Airlines).
On a short flight, I don't care much about the food, seat comfort or inflight entertainment. As long as the flight gets me from A to B, I'm happy. What's irritating though is the rude staff and delays in baggage. But as I mentioned in another thread, I keep my communication with the staff to the minimum and in a calm and polite way. That robs them of their opportunity to be rude.
If the flight is significantly cheaper, I'd fly Indigo. Otherwise I'd opt for Air India.

One a lighter note. Received on WhatsApp.

Even if we assume that the data they have is accurate, a "global airline ranking" where one-third of the weightage is given to claims processing is presumptuous at best.

You know its a s&^%* ranking when you see Singapore Airlines at #37 and Ryan Air ranked above Emirates :coldsweat

Reminds me of those b-school rankings in which IIPM used to feature in 7 out of the top 10 ranks.

During recent Fengal cyclone in Chennai, there was a go around in Chennai airport and its video went viral. Now theres an article in TheHindu saying poor standards are shown by airline pilots during stormy landings :Frustrati. Hope no corners are cut for saving fuel.

Offering my unsolicited views on the links posted by member @SuperGirl_Dad. I'm using his/her post only as a reference point. My post is not aimed at member @SuperGirl_Dad.

....there was a go around...As there will be in a severe storm and should be. Nothing wrong with going around in strong gusting winds. Every tom, dick and harry, these days, with zero accountability, often lesser knowledge, posts videos these days to earn eyeballs and stir up a sensation where none is justified.

I went through this article written by what seems to be a retired airline pilot. It seems like a caustic article written by a grumpy man trying to create a pond out of a puddle. It is easy to throw darts as a commentator with luxury of time to decide how to nit pik. The poor pilot trying to land in strong winds had only a few seconds to decide what to do. The only point in the article I would give some credence to is his statement that one aircraft glided 4000 feet over the run way before climbing away.

Sadly with social media we are sinking into a culture of criticism for the sake of eyeballs. Just my views others I'm sure will disagree.

Sorry if I misunderstood but how does going around for safety reasons save fuel?