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Associated Press

A computer system meltdown at Delta Air Lines’ Atlanta hub that forced hundreds of flight cancellations on Monday has put a spotlight on how quickly airline technology failures can cascade into a crisis that disrupts travel across the world.
“The airlines should plan better. They should have backup systems,” said Jevon Holder, who was among those stacked up at Hartsfield-Jackson International after Delta halted operations in the early morning. “This is too important to fail.”
Operations resumed as systems were restored but by late afternoon Delta had cancelled more than 650 flights worldwide. FlightStats.com showed nearly 2,500 delays throughout Delta’s system Monday.
Delta did not say if it expects normal operations Tuesday, but such events can have a lingering effect as passengers have to be rebooked and flight crews reassigned.
Delta flights slowly resume after computer outage grounds planes worldwide, thousands stranded
The airline said it will offer US$200 vouchers for future travel to customers whose flights were canceled or delayed more than three hours as a result of the episode.
The problem started with a 2.30am power outage that wreaked havoc on computer systems at Delta’s Atlanta hub.
Georgia Power said the outage was caused by the failure of a piece of Delta equipment called switch gear, which switches power flows within a system. That affected flight planning and customer tracking systems, and at 5am the airline declared a “ground stop” halting takeoffs around the world.
In its update late Monday afternoon, Delta said that after the power outage “some critical systems and network equipment didn’t switch over to Delta’s backup systems,” adding that “investigation into the causes is ongoing.”
The shutdown came just as travellers started flowing into Hartsfield-Jackson and other airports. Monday morning is usually busy as business travellers gear up and vacationers return home. Tens of thousands of affected customers struggled to figure out the status of their flights.
Delta’s problem came only weeks after a similar meltdown at Dallas-based Southwest Airlines — the No 2 carrier in Atlanta behind Delta.
Such incidents show that computer and power systems for huge operations like airlines are “as important, or more important, as our bridges and other physical infrastructure that need to be constantly upgraded and maintained,” said Ramnath Chellappa, an Emory University business professor.
Delta had made major investments in technology upgrades in the late 1990s, but that was followed by hard times, a bankruptcy reorganisation and a merger. In recent years, however, the company has enjoyed record profits.
As a side effect of the outage, many affected travellers said they did not get messages or updates from Delta on their flight status.
“I have had zero communications from Delta,” said John Chapmanme, while waiting in Atlanta for a flight to Milwaukee for an energy conference. He wound up booking a flight on Southwest to Chicago and driving from there.
“I understand the power failure,” Chapman said. “But I would have liked to have seen more communications from Delta.”
Even as the morning wore on, Delta acknowledged “lag time” in accurate flight status info on its website, from Delta representatives on the phone and in the airport.
Delta released a video message Monday afternoon from CEO Ed Bastian, who apologised for the inconvenience to customers.
“The Delta team is working very, very hard to restore and get these systems back as quickly as possible,” Bastian said. He called it in “all-hands-on-deck effort.”
Georgia Power spokesman John Kraft said no other businesses or residences were affected. He said Georgia Power crews responded and determined that Georgia Power’s system “seems to be OK, and determined that it apparently was an issue on (Delta) equipment.”
Fitch Ratings, a credit-rating agency, said it expects “investment-grade companies like Delta and Southwest to have the ability to withstand unexpected events like these without harming their credit profiles.” But Fitch noted that outages can be costly due to rebooking expense and overtime, and can generate ill will with passengers.
It also noted: “The heavy reliance on computer reservation systems and the interconnectedness of airline schedules means that even minor outages tend to cause ripple effects that affect the network well beyond the time of the initial outage.”


Computer crash that grounded Delta flights worldwide exposes airlines’ tech weaknesses

Passengers wait at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport on Monday after Delta Air Lines delayed or cancelled hundreds of flights when its computer systems crashed. Photo: AP

Luggage sits on the tarmac Monday, Aug. 8, 2016, by gates at Orlando International Airport, in Orlando, Fla., after a computer outage. Delta Air Lines delayed or canceled hundreds of flights Monday after its computer systems crashed, stranding thousands of people on a busy travel day. (Red Huber/Orlando Sentinel via AP)

Passengers stand in line after Delta Air Lines flights resumed Monday, Aug. 8, 2016, in Salt Lake City, following a computer outage. Delta Air Lines delayed or canceled hundreds of flights Monday after its computer systems crashed, stranding thousands of people on a busy travel day. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)

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