THE aviation mess that unfolded last week was not a story of seasonal haze or visibility issues, and certainly not a story of sudden weather disruptions. What India witnessed was the collapse of a policy framework that had been years in the making, undone in a single meeting behind closed doors.

Thousands of passengers were left stranded across airports, airlines scrambled for cover, and the government responded with a decision that has now raised more questions than answers, placing newly revised fatigue-management rules on hold, despite clear judicial directions, scientific evidence and repeated warnings from pilots and the unions.

The week began with IndiGo cancelling flights at an unprecedented scale, grounding operations across key metro cities, leaving terminals overflowing with co

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