Travelers wait in line at a Delta Airlines counter at Ronald Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, on July 19, 2024. Airlines around the world have been severely disrupted by a major global computer outage, which has caused chaos at airports.
Delta Airlines CEO Ed Bastian has issued an apology and offered frequent flyer miles to affected travelers after thousands of flights were canceled due to a global computer outage Friday. The disruptions have drawn criticism from Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg.
According to aviation data firm OAG, Delta canceled more than 4,600 flights from Friday through Sunday, more than any other airline. By Monday morning, Delta had canceled another 700 flights, representing 19% of its core flights and more than half of all cancellations in the U.S., according to FlightAware.
The delays and cancellations have drawn a lot of attention to Delta, an airline known for its reliability and punctuality.
“We continue to receive reports of unacceptable customer service disruptions and conditions at Delta Air Lines, including hundreds of complaints filed with our Department,” Buttigieg said in an email Sunday evening. “I have made clear to Delta that we expect the airline to provide prompt refunds to customers who have chosen to cancel their travel due to the disruptions, as well as timely refunds for food and hotel accommodations to affected passengers, and adequate customer service for all.”
While most other airlines have recovered, Delta continues to struggle. American Airlines reported nearly normal operations by Saturday. United Airlines suffered significant disruptions Sunday, with 9% of its schedule canceled, or 260 flights, according to FlightAware, but still fewer than Delta.
“I want to apologize to all those who have been affected by these events,” Bastian said in a message to customers. “Delta is committed to connecting the world, and we know how difficult it can be when your travel is disrupted.”
Delta offered flight attendants extra pay for the shifts, according to a staff memo Sunday. The airline also called some flight attendants on their personal phones to request their assistance, according to an unnamed person familiar with the matter. High demand during one of the busiest periods of the summer made it difficult for Delta to find alternative flights for affected travelers, Bastian said.
On Sunday, research firm Raymond James forecast that the financial impact on Delta could exceed $160 million.
Delta’s use of Microsoft tools has been significantly impacted by the outage. “In particular, one of our crew monitoring tools was affected and was unable to effectively process the unprecedented number of changes triggered by the system outage,” Bastian explained.
This incident is somewhat reminiscent of a problem Southwest Airlines faced in late 2022, when it had to deal with severe winter weather conditions.
A faulty software update from cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike that blocked some Windows-based programs has also impacted the banking and healthcare sectors.