Alaska Airlines is working to “normalize operations” and will bring in outside experts after hundreds of flights were canceled in an IT outage that has left tens of thousands of travelers reeling.
The IT outage caused a ground stop for the Seattle-based carrier on Thursday, with passengers complaining of being stuck on planes waiting for updates on their travel plans.
Alaska Airlines, which also operates Horizon Air and Hawaiian Airlines, has yet to resolve the issues, with more than 400 flights canceled on Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air as of 1 p.m. PT on Friday, according to an X post from the carrier.
The outage has not impacted Hawaiian Airlines flights.
Alaska Airlines is working to ‘normalize operations’ and will bring in outside experts after hundreds of flights were canceled in an IT outage that has left tens of thousands of travelers reeling (Mario Tama/Getty Images)
The carrier said more than 49,000 passengers have faced travel disruptions over the past two days as it races to “normalize operations safely and as quickly as possible.”
“We are immediately bringing in outside technical experts to diagnose our entire IT infrastructure to ensure we are as resilient as we need to be,” Alaska Airlines said, adding that it’s increased airport staffing to support guests.
This is the second IT outage the carrier has faced this year. In July, flights were grounded for three hours due to a technical issue.
Alaska Airlines said it “took action to harden our systems” after the July outage, but the new IT failure “underscores the work that remains to be done to ensure system stability.”
The carrier apologized and took responsibility for the inconvenience caused by the outage to passengers.
More than 49,000 passengers have faced travel disruptions over the past two days, according to the carrier (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
“We are deeply sorry for the disruptions this event has caused for so many of our valued guests,” Alaska Airlines said. “We know our guests put their trust in us when they choose to fly with Alaska, and this level of performance is not acceptable.”
The carrier advised travelers to check their flight status before going to the airport.
“A flexible travel policy that allows guests to self-service on our app and website is in place,” Alaska Airlines said.
