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Why are flights canceled, delayed? Global outage prompts ground stop

Why are flights canceled, delayed? Global outage prompts ground stop

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Here are four things to know about canceled and delayed flights

When are you entitled to a refund or free hotel when traveling? Here are four things to know when dealing with canceled or delayed flights.

Getty, USA TODAY

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Megan Brown said Washington Dulles Airport was surprisingly calm, even as the airline industry was in turmoil as the day began.

Air passengers around the world faced delays, cancellations and problems checking in as airports and airlines were caught up in a massive IT outage that also affected industries ranging from banks to media companies.

Several U.S. carriers, including American Airlines, United Airlines, and Delta Air Lines, issued ground stops for all their flights early on Friday due to communication problems, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

There were over 1,100 flights canceled and more than 1,700 delays as of 8:05 a.m. ET, according to flight-tracking website FlightAware. According to aviation analytics company Cirium, the cancellations so far represent a little over 1.9% of scheduled flights, which the firm says is “significantly higher than usual at this point in the day.” Most airlines were able to resume operations as the morning progressed, but many said they expected disruptions to continue throughout the day.

“We just took the gamble and came here, and hopefully we’ll leave today,” Brown told USA TODAY by phone from Dulles. “Everyone’s in the same boat. There’s nothing you can do.”

Brown is traveling to San Francisco with her husband, two kids and sister-in-law, and hasn’t gotten any information about when her 8:25 a.m. flight will actually depart.

“I’m cautiously optimistic that they’ll get us moving at some point,” Brown said.

She added that when she arrived at Dulles, the airport was less crowded than usual, making for a quicker than expected security screening. And, she said, so far passengers seem understanding about the disruptions.

“The computer screens are all blue and say recovery or they list flights as normal, but the information online is meaningless,” she said. “No one’s yelling yet, so that’s good.”

Around the world, airports and airlines advised customers to arrive earlier than normal for flights. Analysts said the outage was likely tied to a glitch in Microsoft software used globally.

Microsoft said users might be unable to access various Office 365 apps and services due to a “configuration change in a portion of our Azure-backed workloads.”

More on the outage: Global tech outage grounds flights, hits banks and media businesses

According to an alert sent by Crowdstrike to its clients and reviewed by Reuters, the company’s “Falcon Sensor” software is causing Microsoft Windows to crash and display a blue screen, known informally as the “Blue Screen of Death.”

The alert, sent at 1:30 a.m. ET on Friday, also shared a manual workaround to rectify the issue. A Crowdstrike spokesperson did not respond to emails or calls requesting comment.

The aviation sector is hit particularly hard due to its sensitivity to timings. Airlines rely on a closely coordinated schedule often run by air traffic control. Just one delay of a few minutes can throw off a flight schedule for take-offs and landings for an airport and airline for the rest of the day.

Some airlines said they were already back online, with Spanish carrier Iberia saying it had managed to avoid flight cancellations.

Airline waivers

Travelers are in for a rough day, but airlines are doing what they can to provide extra flexibility to those affected by the outage.

American issued a waiver for affected travelers covering all of its U.S. hubs.Delta: Delta resumed operations just befor 8 a.m. ET, but said it expects disruptions to continue throughout the day. The airline issued a waiver allowing all passengers traveling Friday to rebook their flights.United: In a statement, United said it was resuming flight operations as of 6:20 a.m. ET, but expects delays and cancellations throughout the day. The airline issued a travel waiver for select airports so passengers can make changes if their flights are affected, though a United spokesperson told USA TODAY that nearly all of the airline’s flights depart or arrive in one of the airports covered by the waiver.Spirit: The airline issued a waiver allowing customers who are booked to fly Friday or Saturday through any airport in its network to change their flights at no additional charge.What happens if my flight is canceled?

Department of Transportation rules require all airlines to offer customers a refund if their flights are canceled for any reason, but customers may be entitled to additional compensation if a cancellation is within the airline’s control.

It is unclear whether an IT outage affecting all airlines would qualify within their control.

Controllable vs uncontrollable delays

The DOT draws a distinction between operational issues that are in an airline’s control versus those that aren’t. 

“A controllable flight cancellation or delay is essentially a delay or cancellation caused by the airline. Examples include: maintenance or crew problems; cabin cleaning; baggage loading; and fueling,” a DOT document says.

What should I do if my flight is delayed?

If your flight is experiencing a long delay, the Transportation Department suggests asking airline staff if they will pay for meals or a hotel room.

The DOT dashboard reflects airlines’ official policies, but many carriers handle compensation for delays on a case-by-case basis and may provide vouchers or other benefits in some situations that are not formally covered.

Contributing: Andrew Mills, Joanna Plucinska and Lisa Barrington; Reuters

Source link : https://www.usatoday.com/story/travel/news/2024/07/19/global-it-outage-flights-canceled-delayed/74466125007/

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Publish date : 2024-07-19 08:19:25

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