Global Air Travel Disrupted by Microsoft Outage

Global air travel came to a halt on Friday morning as a result of a widespread Microsoft outage. The outage impacted many major airlines, including their critical back-end systems used for essential operations.

The Impact on Flights

By 8 a.m. ET, over 1,000 U.S. flights had been canceled and more than 1,700 were delayed, causing chaos for travelers. Airlines reported issues with sending crucial data, such as weight and balance information, necessary for flights to take off.

Chaos at Airports

Passengers took to social media to share images of long lines at ticket counters and error screens indicating the Microsoft programs were down. The disruption was attributed to a software update sent by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike, with Microsoft working to resolve the issue.

Airlines Respond

Various airlines were affected by the outage. Delta Air Lines had canceled around 330 flights, United Airlines had canceled about 150 flights, and American Airlines had canceled about 279 flights. The airlines issued statements, informing passengers of the situation and providing waivers to facilitate changes to travel plans through their respective apps and websites.

In a tweet, United Airlines acknowledged the third-party outages affecting their systems and assured passengers that flights were gradually being restored. American Airlines also tweeted about the technical issue with a supplier and the successful resumption of operations.

The impact of the Microsoft outage is significant, causing a ripple effect throughout the air travel industry and inconveniencing millions of travelers worldwide. As airlines work to resolve the issue and resume normal operations, passengers are advised to stay updated on any changes to their travel itineraries.

——Reporting by Kris Van Cleave.